DA7 The Siege Of Delphite III
by Ameslan
Summary: Mostly notes placed here for continuity. Final story written but not final in series. After a failed mission, the Alliance makes a last stand against an enemy stronghold with key crewmembers trapped behnd enemy lines!


When all contact is lost with a critical reconnaissance mission, Jarrad personally leads the investigation and winds up trapped behind enemy lines…seemingly hopelessly out manned and outgunned!

THE SIEGE OF DELPHITE III

_**PRELUDE**_

Approximately 6 months previous, spinward marches Delphite sector. Location and date classified most secret, secure interest/eyes only: ACCESS LEVEL INFORMATION RESTRICTED; Archival lockout activated— Protection algorithm in place: Deletion protocol upon duplication attempt.

"Inform the Admiral, hostiles present. Danger close!" Announced the voice from Fleet Captain Straker's Datalink. The voice's distortion due to the securely encrypted comlink would have been comical if not for the dire seriousness of the current situation. Straker, or '_Blaze' _as he was known due to the striking coloration of his hair, replied tersely into the unit,

"Confirmed. Operation in progress, will advise. Continue according to plan." Blaze reached over, squeezed his fellow officer's calf twice, and then tapped the same area twice as well to convey the message. The reply of two toe taps was immediate. There was also a determined sigh up in the enclosure. Under his breath, the man being guarded murmured just loud enough to be heard,

"If only Pr'gn was still in uniform instead of gallivanting about the sector in newfangled hot-rod starships or Ses was at flag rank… But no-o-o-o-o-o it always falls to O'Camp to put his expertise on the line. If only I was a better writer a couple decades ago, I could have done my analysis by memo. That way I could now be assured of the condition of my skin on a daily basis! Believe it or not, I actually entertained the idea when I accepted the promotion and position of prominence that my life's pace would actually change somewhat. I guess I should have asked the Jerichans for their input even _before _I knew of them?" Blaze nearly smiled if he had not been busying himself with checking the calibration of the micro-detectors scattered throughout hallways of the surrounding area. The HUD of his eye protection indicated activity on the periphery of one of the sensors. A slight adjustment focused more capability on the location. With the activity going on behind him, the results were indeterminate. He restored the settings so that the setup was acting as Threat Assessment/Positional-Placement Evaluator Resource, or '_Tapper' _on the HUD. He noted with some consternation that the situational intelligence was slightly off. The Jerichans were approaching from a slightly different vector that anticipated. Their egress plan was now severely compromised. They were cut off. They needed to leave now.

"Status, Admiral?"

"Almost one minute until reset is complete. A matter of seconds to upload new protocol from there"

"We may not have a minute. Even 30 seconds would be pushing it, Sir."

"Then push back harder and find it somehow. The mission comes first." Blaze responded to the order by tersely calling into the Datalink,

"Initiate '_bounding' _now!" The Strike Force commander watched with a combined sense of satisfaction and dispassion as an intense volley of firepower was delivered from three distinct sections of IFF markers displayed on the TAPPER. Following this withering fire, there was a slight pause and then a series of heat blooms. To the casual observer, these seemed to be random explosions. To the trained eye, it was obvious the Angry Angels had expertly placed and timed the munitions for maximum effect. It was largely effective. The Jerichan Shock Troops shook off the onslaught and recovered at a pace impressive to Blaze. A command was given by a familiar voice and one section of defenders advanced to meet the attackers' impromptu rush. This action broke the Jerichan assault in that section. Unfortunately, they were using the rush as a tactical redirect from the regrouping in another section. The action was nearly effective at disrupting the defenses of the Alliance position. The Jerichan forces had made one critical mistake in their own plans. These were no ordinary warriors they were confronting; these were Alliance _Strike Force_. On top of that, these were not just any 'Strikers'. These were the infamous Angry Angels. The élite of the elite. They had begun as a platoon having joint training with the Drakmärian Royal Rangers as well as Nortanian Mystic Warriors. As these members were promoted to lead other platoons, the reputation began to expand and grow. They were known for getting the job done no matter the cost as well as for maintaining a high standard of integrity. Because of the high moral standard of the foundational creeds of the Rangers and Mystics being indoctrinated into their training, the platoon took the moniker "_Angry Angels_" and this followed all the way to the Regimental level. Above that level, the Flag Officers who had not experienced field operations tended to eschew such appellatives. Their reputation now served them well as their actions bought the needed time. It also had the side effect of making the situation more dangerous for all involved. Straker watched his team make a '_peel' _maneuver as they made a protective line while rounding the corner a scant few meters away. He barely registered the announcement behind him _reset complete_ followed by a subdued sliding **CLICK **and an announcement which lasted only 5 seconds but seemed almost timeless in his subconscious mind _upload…………………complete_ indicating completion of the final phase of the mission. O'Camp slid from the enclosure and closed the cover. He quickly gathered the equipment he had removed in order to fit into the space and joined his comrade at the entrance of the alcove. The Irishman could see the running firefight was now but a scant meter from his location in two directions. The alcove was at the left corner of a 'T' intersection. In order to get out, he would have to cross the intersection and make a mad 6.5-meter dash to the next hallway on the other side of the hall from the T entry they were currently holding. After a couple quick shots down either hall, Blaze mentally evaluated the situation viewed through his weapon's remote sight. The red-haired officer barked into his 'Link,

"Package delivered, begin extraction process!" Due to the proximity, O'Camp heard Vine's resulting orders simultaneously via his own 'Link as well as from the Striker's own lips,

"Blue team, peel right and hold the line! Red team, hard advance using suppressive fire! Green team, break contact and sortie contacts at location Alpha. Green, ensure integrity of location for precious cargo. Red, use existing local security measures to contain and divert opposing forces when suppressed and then form up on Green team using alternative routing!" O'Camp watched on his HUD as one group separated from the mêlée and made an impossibly fast track for the point where their shuttle was hidden. It was an almost a direct route with a few right angles thrown in for good measure to throw off those who might be following. The former Chaplain's gut clenched as the bio-signatures of a couple of the advancing team members went out. A moment later, Captain Straker announced _On the move!_ as the HUD showed a series of energy partitions engaged near the location of the fallen Strikers. Blaze bolted from the alcove at a crouch to take up a defensive cover position at the next hallway 10 meters away. He gestured for his superior to follow and O'Camp did likewise. Halfway there, the Irishman saw a Jerichan rounding the far corner ahead of him. He started to panic but something in his mind went to autopilot and he threw himself to the floor in a sliding dive while shouting,

"Behind you, Captain!" Blaze glanced at O'Camp with a puzzled expression as he spun to follow his superior's firepower to determine the new target. Straker heard Vine announce the Jerichans were on the retreat right as he saw Troopers pouring from the far hallway. His mind filled in the blanks from what his sensors displayed on his HUD. These were the same men using a different tactic…and the Admiral was sliding rapidly into the line of fire! Blaze was about to reach into the hallway and grab the strap of O'Camp's utility harness. O'Camp had said something the Captain did not understand but thought it sounded Romulan. O'Camp was peripherally aware when he had spoken, he had used his old DNA-enhanced linguistic abilities. His primary concern was the panic welling up within him from the rapidly increasing number of opponents now gunning for him as the sole target available. He saw Blaze reach for him as the red-haired man used his blaster rifle single-handed while aiming with the HUD's remote sight. Purely on instinct, O'Camp rolled into a kind of sideways somersault and planted his boot on the far wall of the intersection. He continued firing with Straker as the other man grabbed his harness and the Admiral rolled with the Captain's pull. As the Angry Angels stormed down the hall past them, the two officers paused a second to catch their breath. O'Camp blinked several times and then took off his HUD spectacles while commenting he was feeling dizzy. Blaze held his Datalink near his superior's eyepiece and said it needed recalibration, as there was evidence of a near hit. O'Camp's mind was spinning for another reason as well since, although he was thinking clearly, he was thinking in Romulan and this was no longer natural for him. While keeping himself occupied with the task at hand, Straker casually commented,

"Interesting accent you have there sir. Where did you learn your Romulan...if you don't mind my asking?"

"Ch'Havran..." O'Camp blurted without thinking. He was beginning to feel nauseated and this was a cause for alarm. He shook his head in an effort to clear it before he slid on the eyeset. It did little to no good. He got a sudden flash of pain through the side of his head where his cloned ocular implant was and there was a knot in his stomach from the memory of the cause...a situation remarkably similar to this one! O'Camp noted the advance of Blue down the adjacent hall as Straker announced for Red and Green to _prepare for exfiltration, package on the way_ and replaced his weapon's power cell. The two made their way at an even yet rapid pace back to the combat shuttle's hangar yet faced no resistance. They came up short as they entered the access for the area. The sounds of a furious battle were evident even before they rounded the final corner. According to O'Camp's HUD, Red and Green were engaged with opponents, which were not visible on the sensors. He recalibrated the Datalink to 'read' off the ably defended combat shuttle's internal grid and noted the Alliance Strikers were being strafed by Jerichan fightercraft! With Straker running interference, O'Camp eased his way over to the computer terminal near the entrance. The Admiral pulled his communication microphone away from his lips and addressed the interface,

"Recognize secure master input initialization protocol. User ID: Bravo BREAK Oscar STROKE Charlie." Upon prompting, he continued, "Passport: ARCHANGEL Councilor Omega Gamma 773 violet." The computer's AI accepted his commands and the hologram whispered into existence. Straker, who was crouched on the opposite side of the hall to give himself a clearer field of fire, was providing cover and could not hear the hushed conversation his commander was having with the computer. Only a minute later, Vine and Blue team joined them and formed a skirmish line at the entrance. O'Camp continued to converse with the hologram while pointing to a graphic on the monitor. He then held up his 'Link and tapped a few keys. He called out for Vine and Straker,

"Blaze, I'm turning command of this mission to you, get these men out of here. Vine, I need 8 volunteers to fly 4 of the Rogues from the next hangar. I also need you to recommend your most promising soldier to accompany me as I go with them. Vine called out in a voice that would do a Klingon proud,

"Diamond, front and center! You are on _boss watch _as of now! Red and Green teams call off by threes to give me 8 men to accompany the Admiral." O'Camp watched as one of the soldiers made their way down the line of defenders and slapped every third one on the helmet. Those who were slapped broke from the line and did a _'peel' _maneuver, which was a unique type of leapfrog, as they wound their way from one point of cover to the next. As they watched the commandos' progress, Straker inquired of O'Camp,

"You had spoken in a unique dialect of Romulan which is not very common for a non-Romulan. I also noted in the engagement down the hall you had used some maneuvers, which are the type we use in training. I also know from when we do our specialized studies course, one of our scenarios we review is one where a Romulan undercover agent was being debriefed and the location was attacked by the Tal Shiar. Is that one yours?" O'Camp nodded,

"I was the Senior Operations Analyst for a deep penetration data recovery team of 13 people including myself. We were all scientists who only analyzed information garnered by the underground. Our underground contact had remained behind after we were extracted following the exposure and betrayal of my fiancée by a double agent from another team. We were unable to retrieve the slain agent's body and were ordered to abandon the project out of concern it may have been compromised. The 11 of us were waiting aboard the Tactical station with only a 2-man security detail for protection when the Romulans were detected on long-range scanners. In 6 hours, they gave us a crash course in Striker tactics. Sometime during the attack, I was shot in the right eye with my own disruptor, which had been set on heavy stun, and left for dead. When the Klingons showed 3 days later, they finished off the Romulans we had somehow managed to hide from. I had 5 phasers in my belt, which only had about a dozen discharges left each. The remaining security guard was carrying a sword. Although the Klingons were still itching for a fight after their easy defeat of the Romulan warbird, they were so impressed by our feat they did not have the heart to continue. They brought us to the closest starship although the security guard died soon after our rescue. I helped write the scenario you are referring to. I had intended it as a no-win situation rather than a training situation though." As Diamond made her way to the officers' position,

* * *

N O T E S--S T A R T

O'Camp and the 9 commandos made their way to the next hangar where they find 5 fighters waiting for them already prepped by the computer. These were upgraded Rogues which had two seats and an extra set of aft facing wings with the vertical stabilizers on the tail section rather than the wings. A comment is made about how fast the new fighters were distributed to facilities as compared to how slow the same has been for ships. Another comment is made about the new fighters being nicknamed _'Sleds' _and they are not as fast but they are more maneuverable. Two fighters are destroyed in the subsequent aerial battle but the activity distracts the Jerichans long enough for the commandos to escape. The battle cuts off the fighters from the shuttles and the NARNIA and ARCHANGEL arrive in position to protect the shuttles. The SHROUD manages to blow through the line and Straker orders his crew to cede command to O'Camp. Back aboard his old ship, O'Camp notices not much has changed. After defeating the Jerichans, O'Camp decides he is having too much fun back with the Striker Scout and Blaze jokes he is worried about losing his command. O'Camp shrugs and states he has no interest in commanding the Striker contingent assigned to this model by design. Back aboard the NARNIA, the senior staff meets and confirms preliminary reports indicating a successful implementation of the new system. O'Camp comments it will likely be at least weeks before any noticeable result is observed and even then it will not be noted until a complete analysis of the 'trapping' is done and even then it will be a matter of how it affects what it interacts with. They rendezvous with the PRIMUS on its way to meet with a team from MWI. Pr'gn is missing following a strange transmission during a test flight of a new prototype vessel, which bridges the gap between the Wayfarers and the Striker Scouts. The Star Corps wanted to develop its own version of the Courser and have mission flexibility built-in unlike having to swap modules similar to the Wayfarer; or having to modify the existing mission of being a transport and support vessel for the Strike Force, which is how the Striker Scout got its name. Before transferring back to the PRIMUS from the ARCHANGEL, Ses is called into a private conference with O'Camp. O'Camp tells the Trill about the problems he had with his Romulan episode. Ses indicates concern since the implants were supposed to have been neutralized well over a year ago and if they are asserting themselves; it has the potential for causing significant and uncertain consequences. As the PRIMUS departs, McCollin contacts O'Camp, informs him he has been in communication with Jarrad, and for a number of reasons asks for O'Camp's input on granting Ses a battlefield field grade commission. O'Camp agrees indicating the next time a mission like this comes up Ses would have to be promoted first anyway as he is getting too old for this kind of excitement. McCollin teases his friend about this admission as the 5 craft head their separate ways.

N O T E S--E N D

* * *

_**INTRO**_

The vessel slid out of warp at a distance her commander assumed to be safe. This was only a reconnaissance mission, but it was important enough every precaution had to be taken. The vessel's design and mission were one-of-a-kind and they were specifically focused toward reconnaissance. All their weapons were of a defensive focus and the sensors were the most finely tuned in the fleet. It took them almost a week of using every trick in the book to approach their vetting area. By comparison, had they employed their impulse engines at full power it would have taken them slightly more than 2 hours. This observation by his Ops Chief elicited a light laugh and a knowing nod from his aging Captain. The Captain turned and smiled a tight smile at his First Officer who was gazing pensively out the window. He did his best to avoid his superior's gaze but nodded sadly in response. They both knew what was coming. Their mission was ending and their last mission had been the deciding factor. They had always struck a delicate balance but sometimes even a reporter has to become part of the news when the situation becomes desperate. Unfortunately, when one becomes part of what you are observing, you are unable to maintain perspective and you have to walk away. The agent the crew had recently aided had known this when he had acted and the crew was unanimous in supporting him as they knew the alternative was beyond intolerable. Their superiors knew nothing of the incident and those affected would never believe it even once they figured out the most likely scenario. Still history had a way of sorting things out and this meant they would soon be forgotten despite all the work they had done. Standard passive sensor sweeps were initiated and an aberration was noted in the location the intelligence reports they were following up on had indicated. They began to expand their sensor sweep methodology and surreptitiously began to fine-tune their focus on the specific location. They had learned many methods to hide their activities and had even done complete high-level sweeps of maximum-security installations with the subject none the wiser. Such was not the case this time. In a manner of speaking, they were expected and as soon as they had begun their activities, countermeasures had been applied. Hidden within the feedback telemetry of their scans was a small line of code. In and of itself it was innocuous. A couple strings of data that were almost meaningless at face value. Unfortunately it was a cleverly designed virus designed to cooperate with the system's own protocols and algorithms so completely it was barely even noticed as it was processed as extraneous information—much like a weed growing out of an urban sidewalk…unusual perhaps, but still within normal systemic parameters. Information was processed quickly and everyone went about their tasks with due diligence. It was not until the computer's holographic interface began to note certain 3-D terminals were not reacting to their environment in as smooth a flow as designed that anything out of the ordinary was even noted. The Captain decided to shut down operations and relocate further from their hiding place near the electromagnetic soup from a dense heavy-metal laden asteroid skimming a wall of the Shadowlands. Little was he to know it was this naturally occurring field slowing down the sleeping giant currently growing more and more restless as it snaked faster than the speed of thought through their computer core seeking specific subroutines to modify by devouring key segments. The helms being fired one directional thruster at 1/10 power for 1.5 seconds. Just enough to break their inertia so they would be mistaken for background clutter until they were close enough to another asteroid with a tamer composition. It was only then the Ops manager noted something unusual with the way the sensors were responding. More than unusual, it was very strange as some of the supposedly static telemetry was changing before the officer's own eyes. The being had attended enough conferences at Outpost Nortania concerning the makeup of the Shadowlands to know this was _not_ natural. The officer turned to address this to the Captain, but he was seated at the Science station at the far side of the bridge. The normal _Standard Operating Procedure _while in mission mode was to speak in hushed tones just to be careful. Since the Ops manager thought this information important enough, she raised her voice ever so slightly to get his attention by calling his name. It came out as a scream. Actually, the whole ship and crew screamed. More to the point, it was a collective dying scream as the slumbering giant awoke with a roar. This roar was the explosion that destroyed the DAV CYGNUS. The Commandant of the Jerichan Trooper force that had recently captured the Relay station at Delphite III grinned at the confirmation the new weapon was not only functional but also effective and since it used the Alliance's own technology as a delivery device, it could strike at the heart of the enemy with impunity.

_PERSONAL LOG OF D T JARRAD, CO DAV TANELORN-B: It has been exactly one year since the inception of the counteroffensive established after the TANELORN's first dry-dock refit following her shakedown cruise. I have just been informed of the latest casualty we have suffered: the crew of the DAV CYGNUS. It was on another one of its ultra-secret recon missions of which the council only informs me of the existence of a mission. One positive note is that I won't ever have to wonder where I'm sending them the next time (although I know of at least one of her late officers who would chide me for my sarcasm, but anyway…). This year has been a busy one. We barely managed to keep the Romulan border open, which seemed to please the Romulans to no end. The Romulan Commander, Soner…something or other, actually thanked and saluted me. His Tal Shiar political officer even admitted there was a likelihood our assistance was of some effect. O'Camp assured me that this was an obscure Romulan dialect for 'thank you' so I replied accordingly all the while trying my best to keep a straight face. Leave it to O'Camp to see how far I can be pushed during a diplomatic event! While the TANELORN-B was holding the line at Cromuria, the LARRGN-Z took the beating of its career at GALLIFREY STATION and actually took a few more hits than Henndigade, her late engineer indicated she could likely handle. Turns out the Qortazian was partly right. The ship could take the hits but the crew could not. Out of 1103 people aboard, only 98 survived and all of them were in the saucer section when a rescue party evacuated the crippled ship. Ses actually informed me that in all his 1500+ years of experience, this was the most damaged he'd ever seen a vessel that anyone had ever survived. It was about to be scrapped when it was determined that the damage assessment was 50.003 as the internal framework was still intact even though the starship had been hulled in several places. The council decided in deference to her namesake that she'd be rebuilt, despite the logistic toss-up. While we were abandoning the now-derelict GALLIFREY STATION, SERENDIPITY STATION wound up being captured. The JAMES T KIRK was sent on a mission in a vain attempt to blockade the far side of the wormhole. Only the saucer section made it back on barely functioning life-support with the report that the MacAULIFFE had been destroyed. Back in dock for some much-needed recuperation, I had some upgrade ideas incorporated into the TANELORN-B. Reports indicated a task force headed in the direction of Rileus but I had a reliable source that indicated the true threat was a battle group headed for Federation territory in order to seal the Romulan border once and for all. To say this was an agonizing decision for me is an understatement. I had to cut a fine balance between the deployed forces at the two threat locations. I knew the shipyards at Rileus had a squadron of native-designed Destroyers but backing them up with just a light force would likely make the opposing forces suspicious. On the other hand, I needed all my capital ships for the surprise counteroffensive at Lucius, which is where I'd drawn the line. The feint at Rileus was a Jerichan suicide mission comprised entirely of Scout craft. The attackers kept our forces busy only long enough to deploy a __mass-driver 'planet killer' on the Rilean homeworld. At Lucius, we stopped the Cruisers' advance cold. One Fathership didn't even get off a shot before the TANELORN-B had incapacitated it. Rather than surrender, the vessel's Commandant crash-landed the massive craft into the planetary central government's capital city after ionizing the hull. The ionization instantly became part of the atmosphere upon the massive explosion, which Mainframe calculated as being 112 times more devastating than the weapon deployed on earth over Japan. We lost the LARRGN-Z and the DRAKMÄR as well as four other capital ships. The NARNIA had to be removed from the fight as her newly installed bio-active computer core was malfunctioning. To her crew's credit, they did manage to hold things together long enough to rescue several dozen survivors from the ill-fated DRAKMÄR. We soon had the bulk of the Jerichans at full retreat but a number of the more damaged craft kept us busy by taking pot shots at our disabled ships. The Jerichans tried rallying at Delphite III, but the remainder of the Rilean Arachnid class destroyers confronted them. It was a noble, if futile, effort but it did give some of the faster Alliance craft a chance to catch up. What little good it did. During this rout, the TALON was destroyed along with the remaining Arachnids, including the MERCY. Although Pr'gn has some questions about the loss of the MERCY due to the debris field being different from the rest of the other destroyers. Something about the modular design and the uneven pattern of damage (?). With the destruction of the TALON, the Alliance and the Federation came to the mutual decision that the Starfleet should withdraw its forces from our territory as our resources were spread too thin for support and STARBASE MacLEOD no longer had a primary mission so they subsequently abandoned it. Star Corps could have used the facility but it presented too easy a target for the concept to come to fruition logistically. Due to the loss of the DRAKMÄR, the ALLIANCE was re-christened the R'ZAL'SHII before completion and was sent on a crucial mission just three months after her shakedown cruise. Pr'gn had been kidnapped and was being held on SERENDIPITY STATION. The R'ZAL'SHII was given the task of transporting the 'Angry Angels' to effect a rescue. For all my posturing about how invincible the TANELORN is, that unfortunately did not extend to her sister ship. Pr'gn was rescued, but at the cost of 3208 lives. Along with that, the combat shuttlecraft was crippled and it took the rescuers over 2 1/2 months before they could get to a location where they could link up with a Shadowcat to call for help. They had tried to contact several of the probes but had no luck. A further investigation into this problem indicated that the internal computer fail-safes on the Shadowcats had all been triggered. After Hersh had determined it was not a design malfunction, he also discovered the main processors for the solid-state backups, which were also of organic design (or at least the connectors are), appeared to have some level of decay in them. It was then discovered that all of them had spent some time in or around the Delphite sector based on their last transmissions. I had wanted to send the SHROUD to investigate as Brian had indicated they were in the area and their track record was most impressive. At the last minute, the orders were changed and the CYGNUS was sent instead. Even Councilor Bii'vor, with whom I normally have an honest relationship, couldn't tell me anything. Three days later, I received a report that consisted of five words: **THE CYGNUS HAS BEEN DESTROYED** with no accompanying information on the PADD. That same day I ordered a team be setup to investigate this loss. It has been a month since we heard from them just as they were about to enter the sector. This situation is getting to the point where I'm taking a personal interest in this one. The Alliance-class PRIMUS is due to arrive in two days from Lunär. McCollin really loves his new ship almost as much as I do mine. Of course, Hersh has confessed that he goes to visit the ALLIANCE every chance he gets and has even had the main VIP quarters decorated in Nortanian motif even though the Grand Paladin GENTAR Falcon is his flagship and despite the fact that the warship is still incomplete. I have asked them to expedite completion on the vessel despite best estimates of at least a week to conclude systemic simulation. If something has gone wrong in that key sector, I want every ship at my disposal even if I have to drag a few out of mothballs!_

"What was it you couldn't even tell me over a secure command channel? I've had a week full of bad news and spending the past 3 1/2 days at emergency warp has only added to my headache. Fortunately, these new specialized _Penta-static _drives are capable of _hot swapping_. We have three ships missing in areas I traversed to get here. On top of all that, Pr'gn is acting very quirky since his rescue and that seems to bother me most of all." O'Camp held up the PADD in his hand as he continued into the suite and sat down. Jarrad walked from the replicator over to the greeting area and reclined on the couch in a feigned relaxed mood. He took a long drink as he rapidly pored over the unit's contents. Jarrad smiled and murmured,

"It seems congratulations are in order for both your team as well as the Angry Angels. Of course, if I knew what was going on with them right now… But with them, no news is good news right!" O'Camp could tell by his old friend's expression and body language something was pressing on his mind. Hazarding a wild guess, the Spacedock's Commanding Officer inquired,

"Troubled about the loss of the R'ZAL'SHII? That likely is leaving you a bit less invincible as CO of her sister ship. Besides with Ox losing his brother it leaves you with more of the burden to bear." The other man nodded slowly while admitting,

"I just have a very bad feeling that I can't seem to shake. This situation is out of control. If we've lost that sector, the Jerichans can develop a key foothold into our territory since it wouldn't take much to cutoff Nortania from there, which is intolerable. Even worse, I don't know the fate of the men who I've sent into harm's way. The uncertainties are eating me up and causing me to lose my focus."

"I know what you mean. I've been getting activity and Intelligence reports, which lead me to some disturbing conclusions. Our surprise counteroffensive only backed up the timeline of a potential defeat scenario by about a month. It is estimated that we will be forced to surrender in approximately 4 months and if we abandon Drakmär IV, we can potentially stave off a loss by 2 to 3 weeks. It depends on where we make our last stand. Etum would be two weeks because of the distance and since underwater combat is an undetermined factor with the Jerichans. On the other hand, Nortania would make the delay three weeks _only _if we completely cutoff the Shadowlands and they had to tunnel through as well as if we mined the Aslan shipyards and they took a path through them, which is _not _likely. If something miraculous happened and we did manage to win it would likely take another 2 years and we'd have to sacrifice 85 of the fleet including all of the capital ships and 95 of the current officer corps would be lost as well." At this last statement, Jarrad raised his eyebrows as if to ask _are you serious!_ and then proceeded to shake his head in disbelief as he stared off into the far corner of the room to let the full impact sink in. For a brief moment, he got a thousand-yard-stare and then in a voice having an odd resonance to it asked to nobody in particular "If only there was some way………" O'Camp sat up straight, cocked his head to one side, and lowered his hands from behind his head to resting on the arms of his chair. The Vice Fleet Admiral spoke in even, measured tones as he suggested,

"We could leave for Delphite III earlier than planned, Chief." Jarrad blinked in surprise several times but the expression on his face indicated his former Vice-Commandant might have been anticipating an idea he was just beginning to entertain. Under his breath, the Grand Fleet Admiral mumbled _I hate it when he does that_ and then chuckled lightly. He then stopped short and got a puzzled expression while asking slyly,

"The only problem, as I understand it, is that the PRIMUS is still two days away given her current mission and then there's the Nortanians, whose help we could really use in this matter……unless you've pulled another one of your famous tricks and there are factors I'm not aware of?" O'Camp nodded and with a casual air mentioned the Tactical Scout COVENANT had helped the Warship complete its sweep and had then docked with the larger vessel and both were now waiting for orders just inside the local Shadowland event horizon. The Nortanian Armada was currently on maneuvers near the old GALLIFREY STATION and diverting them would be a simple matter as they were actually awaiting orders. The Jerichans did not go out of their way to confront the Paladin-class starships as it had turned out to be a fruitless one-sided endeavor the last three times they had pursued a direct assault against the border world. Jarrad got the look on his face he usually got when playing Nortanian 7-card wild draw and he was still holding most of his original cards although he actually held a rather weak hand. Instead of saying "_Down Track_!" as the exultation of victory and challenge, he grinned and said,

"Well then, it seems I need to place a call to Nortania."

"If we're thinking the same thing, it might be better if I place that contact. The TANELORN is still in the dock and it would be simple for me to spread some disinformation to prying eyes as it would raise questions if you did it." Jarrad acknowledged it was a sensible measure and the two came up with the content for the communiqué.

* * *

Commodore Hersh shook his head in wonder for a moment and then reached over and switched off the Holo-display for the suite's workstation. He drummed his fingers as he reflected on his friend's transmission _and to think this had started out as such a nice day _and collected his thoughts on the logistics involved The message had been a straightforward situation-report request but his former commanding officer had been holding his arms uncharacteristically folded. It took viewing the message _twice _for the Director of Security to realize the retired intelligence officer was using a variation of _tap code_ to let him know the real intent of the contact. _Prepare the DAV ALLIANCE for combat readiness whatever it takes_! The original request to expedite had been an inconvenience to say the least, but this was going to call on all of the adopted Nortanian's diplomatic skills to come to fruition. It had taken quite a bit of political wrangling for the project to be handled by the Aslan shipyards and now the anticipated public relations bonanza had been simply erased by a transmission lasting shorter than the amount of time than it took him to cross from his bed to his desk. There was an archaic Terran saying that applied but his history was a tad rusty since Social Science was no longer his domain…something along the lines of _such is war. _He tapped a few buttons on his Datalink and the holographic image of the ASLAN SHIPYARDS Yard-Foreman appeared. Although the Armada and the Militia were now two separate entities due to the relational complexities with the Alliance, the Militia was still considered the senior organization. This was why even though the Armada was building the ALLIANCE for its sister organization, it was overseen by the Militia and the shipyard's senior manager was wearing the older design uniform. The Militia Colonel smiled and said in Nortanian,

"_Yes my highness, what a rare delight to see you today. How can I be of assistance?"_

_"You may not be too enthusiastic once you learn of my request, Master Foreman."_

_"Oh nonsense. It is always a pleasure to serve and serving one of your status is always a matter of pride and honor for my people."_

_"Well then…You have just begun field-sim evaluation process on the spaceframe for the ALLIANCE warship, correct?"_

_"Correct my highness. Once we confirm field stress balance, we can install the primary drive and boot up the main computer after hooking up the ODN and EPS networks. Why do you ask?"_

_"We have an emergency situation within Star Corps command and need a ship with as much internal space available as possible for a special mission."_

_"I had heard that both Rileus and Lucius had been catastrophically damaged on a planetary scale, are you hoping to evac any survivors?"_

_"Something like that. We need the ship combat ready as soon as possible—preferably on-site within a couple days."_

_"That may present a challenge. I'm curious about the expediency of the amount of days since the Armada maneuvers are scheduled to conclude within that timeframe. Has something happened involving the fleet?"_

_"Something like that but I'm not allowed to discuss the particulars. All I can say is that time is of the essence and lives are at stake." _The Nortanian nodded in stern comprehension as though he was better off not knowing and reached over to his Holo-com, which sprang to life with an image of a man wearing coveralls who had obviously been quite busy as the clothing was streaked with grime. The third-party image was purposely at a special resolution by Nortanian law and Hersh put a hand on the edge of the workstation to compensate for the brief wave of nausea that accompanied his human senses acclimating to the unique technology. The man took off his protective helm and stood up, took a couple strides and reached over to an invisible workbench and picked something up at about waist height. As soon as he touched it, the headset became part of the image and he slid the device on and said in a voice that sounded odd over the transmission. The communication system was compensating to make his voice sound more natural even though the noise-canceling input was removing all the background roar, he was obviously shouting to hear himself and this was causing feedback within the sensitive transmitter equipment,

_"GREETINGS SIR, WHAT CAN I DO FOR YOU TODAY?"_

_"Prince Hersh has just informed me there has been an emergency declared involving the fleet maneuvers. By order of Star Corps command, you are to cease all operations on other projects and commit full resource availability to the new ALLIANCE-class hull stat. Furthermore, you are to only focus on project viability in relation to combat readiness."_

_"UNDERSTOOD SIR; THAT IS DIFFICULT BUT DOABLE. PEASE ADVISE THAT GIVEN THE SITUATION, I'LL NEED ADDITIONAL MANPOWER. PREFERABLY, FROM THE ARMADA AS THEY WILL BE CONTINUING THE WORK ONCE THIS PROJECT IS SPACE READY. I CAN ONLY SPARE ABOUT 73 MEN ONCE THE VESSEL LEAVES THIS FACILITY AND THERE WILL BE WORK LEFT TO DO SINCE LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS ARE ONLY PLACED IN ABOUT 1/3 OF THE POSITIONS. ALSO, ONLY THE SENIORMOST QUARTERS HAVE BEEN COMPLETED. THIS INCLUDES THE VIP SECTIONS AND EVERYTHING DOWN TO THE JUNIOR OFFICER'S QUARTERS DORMITORY DECK HAS BEEN PREPARED. THIS MEANS THAT THE DEPARTMENT HEADS AND COMMAND STAFF WILL HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE DUTY OFFICER'S QUARTERS AS ALL OTHER RESIDENTIAL AREAS ARE ONLY WALLS AT THIS TIME."_

_"That is acceptable. You will need to install temporary emergency shelters and supplies as well as confirm the operational condition of all primary, secondary, tertiary, and backup systems in case of emergency need. There may be need for a mass casualty evacuation scenario."_

_"UNDERSTOOD SIR, I DIDN'T REALIZE THE SITUATION WAS SO CRITICAL. I'D REALLY LIKE TO HAVE AT LEAST ONE FULL DAY TO BE HONEST." _Hersh groaned inwardly at this _they want 28 hours—that's going to cut the plan way too tight _and frowned at the request. The man in the image in front of him was not looking at Hersh but must have noted the frown as he responded,

_"Unfortunately you'll be lucky if you get half that. This situation is make-or-break critical. Our way of life is on the line as is the well-being of many of our comrades." _The other man acknowledged and then they both signed off. After thanking the Foreman, Hersh bid him farewell and went to make some preparations of his own.

* * *

Pr'gn was in the Spacedock's Recreation deck in the fight of his life against a receiver bag. He was completely bathed in sweat and was so intent in his activity nobody had bothered to mention to him that not wearing the muscle shirt he had come in with was against attire regulations. As it was, the knee-length workout shorts were completely soaked. It had only been 5 weeks since his rescue from the Jerichan forces occupying the Berger stronghold on what used to be SERENDIPITY STATION. He was forever indebted to the 'Angry Angels' for the end to that chapter of his life. He had endured one too many sessions with the Jerichan _Mind Leeches _for his liking and it had left him feeling empty somehow. Raped. He had made the excuse to his wife back at the ASLAN SHIPYARDS his debriefing was still ongoing, as he could not face his children just yet. He hated lying to them but he hated even worse the powerless feeling he now had. When he had retired from his career with the Star Corps, things had gone so well it had been better than a dream come true. He had never even guessed the whole thing was a conspiracy concocted by a Drakmärian childhood friend who had been a P'Linza sympathizer. His betrayal had been the proof the Berger could trust the Dn'gn'or movement. Pr'gn had even hired his old friend to be Chief Administrative Secretary for _Miracle Works Incorporated _as Nortanian law dictated his Vice-Chairman had to be a native. Pr'gn and his friend's sister had even been romantic briefly until she had joined the Armada Reserves. She had specifically requested to be the supervising officer for the launch of the prototype of the first heavy-duty medium-range fast-attack pocket ship colloquially known as a '_Stinger Scout' _by MWI. It had gotten other nicknames during its development such as _micro_- and _mini-destroyer_, _macro_- and _mega-(cor)vette_, as well as others that had been less than flattering or usable in polite company. The Stinger Scout was slightly less than 1/2 the mass of a Courser but only had one deck. Where the Courser could conceivably support a maximum complement of 70, the Stinger Scout was only designed for 20 but had a much greater capability in the tactical, speed, maneuverability, and sensor concerns. Part of the reason it had been nicknamed the 'Stinger Scout' was there had been a contingency planned for a future design modification in which a model could accommodate two Stinger fightercraft in the storage bay (when he had pitched the concept to the Star Corps, he had placed a graphic of a Rogue II 'Sled' in the diagram instead). The project had never gotten past the ill-fated test flight. His human wife and his Drakmärian ex-girlfriend had spent so much time teasing him about his official 'date' that he had overlooked some of the signs things were amiss. With his reputation at stake, Pr'gn should have realized so many 'happenstance' irregularities were out of the norm with his legendary thoroughness and eye for detail. The first indication of a problem was when the navigation computer began to act erratic as soon as they cleared the Shadowlands. He had begun the warp field test by establishing a stable subspace field and simulating the equivalent of warp 1 field stress using a '_bubble' _generated by the deflector. The field pressure had gotten too high too fast. This was common in a dual _piggybacked_ drive setup like this when you pre-saturated the engines to go into high warp from a cold start. It could also happen when you over-primed engines that had just been cleaned. The proper way of dealing with this was to do an emergency shutdown and blow the extra pressure through the impulse manifold. The problem with this was you needed to equalize the pressure, or the '_burp' _could collapse all the subspace fields and you would have to re-prime once you got back to the _dead stick _condition. This had made for some cycling situations in which it had taken days to get the engines restarted after dozens of tries. Because of this, Pr'gn had another way of dealing with things. He had figured since he was going to be activating the warp drive anyway, he would just dump the extra pressure into the reaction intake. Once he did that, he could easily figure out the pressure equivalency value. It was at 1.62 so he quickly input the level at 1.75 since the value had to be at a non-standard level for the coefficient of Cochrane level stability. He almost was not fast enough. By mission parameters, he was only supposed to set it at warp 1 and perform a 30-minute test run. Instead, he eased it quickly to warp 2 to compensate for any micro-bubbles that may have been created by the dispersal of the deflector bubble. Only moments later, the navigational assembly had gone off line. At warp speed that was dangerous to say the least. He asked the observer to take over the controls so she could keep the craft steady while he switched to backup. He saw her reach over to the console to mirror his controls as he stood and turned to face the appropriate panel for his task. He never got that far. He felt a sudden flash of blinding pain in the leg that had been crushed and repaired years ago. He fell into the corner and tried to get up but his leg would not respond and his right arm was stuck in an unnatural position. Pr'gn's childhood friend quickly turned around and faced his sister. He growled something to her in the Drakmärian old tongue and she replied with an epithet as her hands went to her safety harness release. She lifted her leg to kick her brother in the groin as he approached, but he had the advantage with his position. He sidestepped the blow and sank his claws into her upper calf. With a howl of agony, she tried to twist away right as she hit the release, using the motion to reach for her sidearm. With a vicious heave, he pulled and twisted at his sister's leg. It spun her out of the chair so violently her hand, which had been reaching for her weapon, missed completely and instead went between the armrest and cushion of the chair. As she continued her spin, her arm did not quite clear the two parts and there was a sickening **_SNAP_** as her shoulder could not turn any further in the enclosed space. At this same time, her brother released his hold with a flourish and her spin caused blood to be sprayed all over the cockpit. Bleeding profusely from a shredded leg and the additional trauma of a broken arm, which had such a radical compound fracture that Pr'gn was surprised it was still attached, she was still defiant and tried to strike back but did not have the strength. Instead, she continued to challenge him verbally. Pr'gn realized _she's trying to buy me time by keeping him distracted_ and the engineer began to try to think despite his own predicament. He could not reach his own sidearm, a Nortanian _Stinger _weapon which fired a stun pulse, and fighting was out of the question. Something only inches from his head grabbed his attention. The panel's interlink ID code was still imprinted on the underside lip. After connecting the automation link to the ODN system, the installer had forgotten to remove the label, according to procedure. To prevent someone from doing exactly what the engineer was planning to do in a flash of desperate inspiration. Pr'gn grabbed his tricorder and began furiously inputting commands using the interlink ID alphanumeric sequence as a type of _back door_ code. It worked. He was about to try something inventive when he noted a ship approaching at high warp but not sending an IFF signal to _Identify _whether it was _Friend _or _Foe_. He changed tactics and snarled,

"Let her go or this ship will be useless to you!" His former friend whirled around noted the display on the tricorder was a flashing button which matched the color and flash speed of a button on the panel above him. The Drakmärian smiled evilly, with a sigh grabbed his sister by the hair, and slid a Rt'nn knife out from under his sash to point it at her. The intent was obvious but Pr'gn only shook his _no_ in a slow but shallow movement with a determined look on his face. Without expression, the man casually buried his blade n his sister's heart in one smooth motion. It was intended to take advantage of the action's shock factor on Pr'gn but the engineer also had a warrior's heart and knew how to react while ignoring outside influences. It was a skill which had saved the day a number of times when others would have been close to panicking under the pressure of the moment and Pr'gn would 'work a miracle' with only seconds to spare. This instance was no exception. He watched with an odd combined sense of resignation and satisfaction as all the displays flickered sporadically and died. One thing he had found out in the ensuing months is the Jerichans had superior trauma mending and rehabilitation technology. Unfortunately, that had been a gesture of false generosity to get him to reinstate the core database for the Stinger Scout. They had been of the false assumption he would never destroy the database and thereby ruin his own work in which he took so much pride. They had also been under the impression his dedication to his former employers is why he had had such resistance to the Mind Leech. In all honesty, Pr'gn almost wished he had not had the brief satisfaction of destroying his pride and joy, as he would have given _anything _to avoid the agonizing sessions with the Leech. During one of his post-Leech recoveries, he had been so delirious he was sure he had offered to reprogram the database from scratch even though he was not much of a computer scientist and had not done the original programming by himself. His mind had been in a torture-drunk, delirious state when Lieutenant Vine and nearly 30 team members had liberated him from his situation. The whole rescue was a hazy blur even now. He recalled something about being seconds away from landing aboard the new Alliance-class R'ZAL'SHII, which was preparing to go to warp, when something had violently thrown him from the diagnostic bed where he lay. It was several days later when he was coherent enough to understand it had been the destruction of the warship. Vine had evaded capture by hiding the stalled shuttle inside the wreckage for several days and then only leaving after a lengthy space walk by a Striker, who got a severe case of radiation poisoning in the process, determined it was safe. He had spent a month with almost 2 1/2 dozen marines aboard the cramped quarters of Combat Shuttle #3 and they had gone out of their way without complaint to ensure his comfort. Over 3000 people he never knew except for their personnel records in the shuttle's computer had died for him, all of whom only knew of him by reputation. Even when Corporal Anthony Faust, 26, from Hayes in Gloucester County, Virginia, died from lack of proper treatment from the radiation, they did not raise a word about why they had been there in the first place. He had apologized but someone just suggested that unless he was packing some type of radiation weapon the Strikers did not see the need unless he really wanted one of them to search him. Of course, the Sergeant asking the question gestured in the direction of a female Drakmärian Private sitting near Pr'gn. The double intent was clear and it resulted in a round of light laughter.

Back in the present, the retired engineer smiled thinly at the memory. His body was still in the rhythm he had developed after many years of practice and had not missed a beat during his reverie. In fact, he was still so in tune he forgot to break his pace when someone tapped him on the shoulder. He had been so intent in his task that his pent-up frustration combined with the _startle response _caused the blow he was initiating to follow his gaze as he glanced at the individual wanting his attention. He blasted the quarter-breed Samson in the face. Almost. With surprising speed, strength, and agility the leonine officer caught the blow with a hand. He did not even flinch…much to Pr'gn's annoyance. Something flickered across the officer's face and the civilian glanced from the face to where his hand was being held in the other man's grip and watched as the catlike being's claws slowly retracted. Samson growled softly,

"I see your reflexes haven't been affected any—nice hand-eye coordination." Pr'gn's eyebrows knit together briefly as he assessed the comment _he's developed a sense of humor_ was his conclusion.

"Just a little jumpy after the Jerichans' form of hospitality, which leaves a lot to be desired."

"Been there, my friend. With me, it was Romulans. They have a certain kind of creativity when it comes to extracting information." At the comment, Samson released the gloved fist and swept the index finger toward the whitened patch that ran through his golden hair just above the temple.

"Well at least you don't have images of a Mind Leech doing its duty appearing every time you close your eyes." The engineer sighed tightly.

* * *

N O T E S--S T A R T

After Pr'gn admits to still having nightmares about his ordeal, Samson challenges him to a sparring match. Pr'gn tries to overwhelm the other by brute force but finds the being too solidly built making it a futile effort. When Pr'gn changes tactics, he gets in a few good hits. With his confidence renewed, Pr'gn gets into a flow with the fight. The two men dance with their exchange of blows until Pr'gn almost seems comfortable with his loosening of moves and lowering of intensity of attitude. Pr'gn even makes a few remarks in his offbeat sense of humor until Samson makes a radical maneuver. Pr'gn intends to land a kick to the other man's ribs but Samson grabs the leg and swings him bodily into the retaining nets surrounding the sparring mat. Pr'gn is flipped upside down and does an awkward somersault when the force of the throw bounces him back toward Samson. Off balance, Pr'gn stumbles toward his opponent and is brought up short when Samson seemingly drops his guard by lowering his hands. Puzzled, the engineer loses his pacing and concentration for a moment. This is when Samson makes his planned move. He lunges toward Pr'gn to get in the human's face and then bellows a roaring snarl. Pr'gn is shaken by the action and Samson remarks with a shrug 'perhaps now you will see something else in your dreams like my handsome face' and Pr'gn realizes all his time with Nortanians _has _given Samson a sense of humor. Pr'gn laughs in spite of himself and comments he _has to go touch base with an old friend to apologize and find out if the offer is still open_. As Pr'gn leaves to go hit the showers, Samson picks up his Datalink, taps a button and says, 'you were right, it was a very effective tactic. I knew it would work if I did it my way. I think he's coming to visit you soon.'

* * *

O'Camp and a Royal Ranger are seated at a table. Seated at a table across from them is the Council of Elders. O'Camp is barely keeping his temper in check with their latest challenge to his command. Fortunately, the Royal Ranger is well versed in Alliance law as part of his duties and is acting as O'Camp's official attorney. The matter seems relatively trivial but there seems to be an ulterior motive to both men. Every question the Councilors ask the Ranger and O'Camp have a rebuttal for. O'Camp finally is fed up when a question is asked that sounds just like a question a Jerichan once asked him. Disgusted, O'Camp dismisses the Ranger and stands up to leave. The head Elder yells at O'Camp to sit down or his disrespect will force his arrest. O'Camp smugly replies that 'incarcerating the citizen of a treaty power without demonstrating _just cause _is a diplomatic violation of the mutual defense pact'. He challenges them to pursue the investigation but he has only been humoring them to this point. He states at least 3 and possibly 2 more Alliance powers are either voting on or considering issuing a _no confidence _declaration in relation to the Council. Using the homeworld of the Star Corps to establish policy on behalf of the native government has had the side-affect of alienating not only friendly powers but compromising the relationship with neutral powers. As a Federation citizen, O'Camp has been informed he is subject to recall if Starfleet should be called to enforce a border closure instituted by the Federation. Currently the vote is tied with one member abstaining and another power who is prepared to vote for closure is petitioning for membership. The Klingons are only remaining in the fight out of respect for the Lunärians and their efforts on behalf of the winning side during the Klingon civil war. Currently the Council is insisting on micromanaging the command decisions of the senior most officers and several of them are fed up with thinking they have to second-guess themselves in order to appease the Council. He tells them they can take away his rank and privileges if they so choose since he does not really care. He already has options available, as does every member of the senior staff of the Star Corps. If it were not for the Council's vain honoring of a presumed cultural mandate supposedly requiring the Drakmärians to despise them, the Romulans would be willing to join in the efforts to combat the Jerichan threat. The Romulan Empire has been reduced by a third since they have retreated from their expanded territory to protect their homeworld. They figure once the Alliance territory has fallen, they can reach out to the Klingons to defeat a common enemy. The Klingons do not really want to be involved but they have a tradition of siding with the honorable effort in any conflict. O'Camp then leaves.

* * *

Hersh pulls a few strings and gets 3 Royal Paladins, 7 Grand Paladins and over a dozen Paladins to escort the Alliance to the rendezvous. He concocts a clever series of orders to cover the tracks of the unusual fleet movements. Hersh also has 3 damaged Alliance starships disassembled and stowed into the warship's cargo bays to be used as parts. He then beams down to Nortania to place a contact to Lunär from his family's communication center.

* * *

Pr'gn and O'Camp go down to Drakmär IV and visit with their adoptive family. Pr'gn finds out his mother is now a councilor for a local noble meaning he can now use the consonant suffix if he so chooses since he is a citizen. The only catch is he must devote a couple years to local community service. Pr'gn accepts asking he be assigned to the _Constable _program as an _Engineer Artisan_. This way he can work with the Alliance interests during crisis situations if needed. When O'Camp offers Pr'gn a position aboard the Spacedock, he declines saying Jarrad had made the same offer for the TANELORN and he is singularly '_not interested' _on being stationed aboard a posting that is an artificial environment. He actually wants to work with the new TIST and possibly become a teacher someday.

* * *

After getting a call from home McCollin goes and meets with Jarrad. Hersh urgently needs as many of the engineering support craft as well as available engineers to meet him at the abandoned Starbase MacLOED. The message came through official diplomatic channels but with highest priority encryption. This means it was difficult for McCollin, the intended recipient, to decode. McCollin expresses interest as to why Hersh did not simply use the priority command channel but Jarrad indicates that perhaps too much time in the security field has made Hersh see conspiracy theories everywhere. McCollin knows his friend too well and challenges him on that comment. Jarrad indicates he too has some qualms about certain members of the Star Corps hierarchy where the civilian oversight is concerned. Being a military man, he has little use for politics, but lately his position is being forced to become more political in nature. This means he is having more difficulty justifying his actions. He is proud that O'Camp actually had the nerve to tell the Council off when they questioned him making a change of personnel assignment during a combat situation. When McCollin asks what the problem was, he is told a shuttle pilot wanted bridge service in order to qualify for the point needed to be promoted. After spending a week assigned to Tactical, he had moved on to Ops and was on his second day when there was an attack during a shift change. He was having some difficulty keeping up even with O'Camp giving him pointers until the Helm officer was incapacitated. O'Camp ordered the pilot to take the helm so O'Camp could handle Ops rather than O'Camp tutoring Ops while taking the helm after walking nearly twice as far to get to the empty station. McCollin agrees the action taken was the proper one although not completely in line with regulations. Jarrad quotes the regulation that states _personnel shall remain at station during a time of conflict even if due to be relieved unless determined to be incapable of duty_. It was designed to reduce confusion by command personnel not on location and to maintain familiarity with the current situation for operational and command interest. Jarrad states the spirit of the rule was to prevent frustrated commanders from making rash decisions when they were looking to blame someone for an enemy's luck during combat. McCollin agrees bureaucrats who have never worn a uniform have no business with command oversight. Fortunately, Lunärian culture has little tolerance for such egotism and vanity. Even though disciplinary notices have been forwarded to the Lunärian government in reference to him, he has not been formally addressed except that a government representative has given him the communiqué in an informal manner for his review. He has actually heard murmurings the Lunärian government is considering a _no confidence _vote since they are tiring of the war and its direction. Jarrad agrees it has gone on far too long. At that point, Jarrad gets a call from his Ranger bodyguard indicating his is expected for an audience at the capital. Simultaneously both men comment they both have urgent meetings to attend to immediately.

* * *

Jarrad beams down to the capital and meets with the new Primus. There is good news and bad news. Jarrad is mildly unnerved by the marked change in his friend's persona. Gone is the _happy-go-lucky _cocky warrior. He has been replaced with an almost arrogant hard-edged man who seems almost cynical and has an air of not being willing to take any foolishness from anyone. It bothers Jarrad. Larrgn-Z starts by announcing for the record he is disappointed with O'Camp's antics earlier in the day. Jarrad claims surprise stating he is unaware but Larr frowns in disbelief and states his support for the officer is admirable if misplaced. Brian has created his own problems that have resulted in his loss of position as ACE and Vice-Commandant and if he does not get his act together, he will lose the Fleet Admiral's rank and prestige. Larr suggests it will be viewed as a failure of Jarrad's leadership if O'Camp is not reigned in since O'Camp is Jarrad's subordinate. The Primus closes the meeting by saying he is not interested in hearing excuses, only results, and they both have more important things to do than discuss disciplinary issues. As they head out of the office, Larr mentions he has heard the fleet is heading for the Delphite sector. He is glad to hear that since the TANELORN's career began there, it would be good if the Alliance's destiny were determined there and it would bring things to a close. After being dismissed, Jarrad reflects he is getting tired of certain things in his career and this kind of duty tops the list.

* * *

After sending McCollin off on his meeting with Hersh, O'Camp returns to his Spacedock office. He writes up some orders for the duty roster and daily reports. During his review, he notes an anomalous command override in the service logs for the ARCHANGEL. O'Camp goes and visits Jarrad and asks him about the changes. Jarrad acts confused until further discussion reveals he forgot the ARCHANGEL is on a Nortanian duty cycle, which is why there was a roster overlap. Jarrad tells O'Camp he wants him and the ARCHANGEL along as part of the mission. Since the Nortanians are involved, Jarrad wants to show off a little.

* * *

O'Camp proceeds to the ARCHANGEL and begins to prepare for departure. While cleaning out some old mission files, he comes across a file that will not purge. He calls in his Special Operations team leader and points out the file. It is nested within the communication logs and encrypted using a unique algorithm. He was able to find that protocol used to receipt the document, as it is one only a few people are aware even exists because it is so obscure. Unfortunately, for the _Spec-Ops _commando, O'Camp used to use it when he was working for the Federation and now uses it by force of habit in his personal logs. Since he maintains quarters aboard the ARCHANGEL he never transmits his logs and especially not _to_ the Tactical Scout so he has had that file type specially protected to ensure against tampering. The Colonel gets a look on his face as if thinking about something for a moment and then proceeds over to the terminal on O'Camp's desk. A moment later, the file's content is revealed. It is from the CYGNUS and simply declares **_WE ARE OUT OF TIME_** with a referent to a keycode file. O'Camp dismisses the officer and tells him he does not care who gave the order or where it came from, O'Camp considers the withholding of this information a personal and professional insult. O'Camp needs to be sure he has the trust of all personnel assigned to his command. This trust is a two-way street and he wants the Colonel to think about where his loyalties and obligations stand. The Colonel apologizes and states it was a personal message from a friend he trained with but given the extenuating circumstances, he should have acted upon the information in a different manner.

* * *

Jarrad meets with O'Camp and they hold a joint staff meeting for the Spacedock. Since he is doing a diagnostic on the facility's engineering section, Pr'gn is asked to attend. Jarrad gives him the option to join the mission wherever he chooses to work. Pr'gn accepts and joins the two Grand Admirals as they go to the ARCHANGEL's dock. At O'Camp's offer, Pr'gn takes the center seat and gives the orders to undock the ship and meet up with the TANELORN's dock. From there, Jarrad beams over to the special dock to board his flagship. He invites Pr'gn to join him but the engineer declines. Rather than transporting to the TANELORN, he heads to the maintenance section of the dock. The dock is specially designed for the use of the Alliance class. It encloses the ship and is unique in that it can be atmosphere filled. This filling takes several days and tastes a little stale to Jarrad when he goes to inspect the repairs. Upon the knowledge of the flagship's return, the engineering staff had begun the process of preparing the atmosphere. This means the air is almost a week old and has not been recycled to conserve resources. The atmosphere facilitates the restoration of sections of the bio-sheath, which is part of the auto-repair system. Jarrad privately revels in being able to walk on the _outside _of the hull. He gets a sly grin and walks over to the access nearest the bridge.

* * *

A battlegroup departs from the Epsilon Drakmär system. O'Camp notes he has not seen this large a group of starships in this locale since the _Reckoning _incident almost a decade ago.

* * *

When the PRIMUS arrives to meet with the Alliance and its Paladin fleet, McCollin finds he has his work cut out for him. Even Ses comments he wishes he were still a doctor at the extent of work still needing to be done on the ALLIANCE. The main problem is field-testing has not been done and the impulse reactors are constantly crashing. An attempt to cold reset the primary from the hard-coded backups results in the corruption of the entire database. This means the impulse engines are no longer functional and need to be completely programmed from scratch. McCollin transfers the appropriate databases from the PRIMUS and Ses spends quite some time recoding the drivers. The Nortanian task force proceeds to continue to escort the twin battleships to rendezvous with the approaching battlegroup.

* * *

During the multi-day trip, the various commanders do some soul-searching. Meetings with various department heads and assorted comrades are held formally and informally. Equipment is updated, settings are fine-tuned, connections are checked, simulations and drills are conducted, weapons are loaded and tested, personal equipment is issued, words of wisdom and encouragement are shared, speeches of appreciation are extended from superiors to subordinates, prayers are prayed.

* * *

Once the two fleets meet up, Mainframe, Pr'gn, O'Camp, CARIN, and ZIGGY work together to get the ALLIANCE ready for the upcoming events. Pr'gn and O'Camp discover the computer is having problems talking to the other systems. The two humans give the AIs the insight on how to create translator drivers. The Drakmärian database can now talk more fluently with the Nortanian construction. Once the interface is completed, the rest pretty much falls into place and even the non-functioning AI comes on-line which facilitates the balancing of an erratic subspace field.

* * *

The fleet is holding position inside a _null zone _in the Shadowlands. There are only a few of these zones and they are a tightly kept secret within the Armada. Even the now-separated Militia only has confirmation they exist. Hersh and O'Camp insist these are impossible to map or find since they can only be found by accident using the Shadowcats. They are completely safe. A Wayfarer is dispatched to scan for the missing personnel. It is accompanied by a new model of Rogue which is similar to the 'Sled' but also has an extra set of upper aft swept wings each of which have an additional forward gun. This gives double the forward firepower and, because of the appearance of the wings from the front or back, they are called _Rogue X _or simply '_X'_. Since the new Rogues were constructed at Nortania and have yet to be distributed as far as the Spacedock. O'Camp has never been in one. Since a handful is assigned to the ARCHANGEL, O'Camp decides to tag along. He finds them a perfect balance between the original Rogues and the Sleds. The X is 1/2 the mass of a Rogue as opposed to the 1/3 of the Sled. The X still only supports a crew of 2 but basic creature comforts have been restored. Although the armament is now focused on blasters, there is still a torpedo launcher but it uses Starbursts rather than the 2 photon launchers of the Rogue or the single plasma torpedo launcher of the Sled. The X has a single warp drive like the Sled but improvements in the design allow it to attain warp 7 like the Rogue rather than the Sled at warp 5. There is a second impulse reactor and drive although the second one is hooked up to the EPS system. This means the X is only slightly faster than the Sled and somewhat slower than the Rogue is but is much more maneuverable than both since the others are just about equally maneuverable except the Sled has an atmospheric advantage at slower speeds. It also means better shields and firepower than the others do as well, although just slightly in the case of the Rogue. O'Camp really enjoys flying again especially when the Wayfarer makes contact with the remote transponder. A message is attempted to be sent from the hidden team but the distortion of the Shadowlands scrambles it too much. This allows only a portion of it to get through and sections of the encryption are corrupted. When they get back to the flagship O'Camp and Ses are able to piece together as much of the transmission as is possible. O'Camp is greatly disturbed as part of the message corruption is due to the relay protocol since the node ID shows signs of Jerichan influence. The problem is O'Camp helped write and design the security algorithm for the relay. O'Camp takes the information to Jarrad and in his frustration comments '_he is sure someone will use this to give him grief but at least it will not mean that someone will want to take credit for his work again'_. Acknowledging his friend's mood due to his own emotional state a few days ago, Jarrad tells O'Camp to relax and he is not going to accuse O'Camp of colluding with the enemy anytime soon. From O'Camp's reaction, Jarrad can tell his tease falls flat. As O'Camp leaves, Jarrad comments he will get O'Camp to smile before the day is over.

* * *

Jarrad calls a conference in the final hours before departure for mission start. Hersh says the ALLIANCE is ready to go but still needs some crew. He also ensured before he left that the shipyard is back to fulfilling the contract for another Alliance-class offensive warship. Samson indicates from the information obtained by contacting a Shadowcat and using the keycode given him by O'Camp they have been able to do some low-level passive scans and have some preliminary information. They will have to get much closer in order to complete the mission. Jarrad agrees and says a Tactical Scout will be cloaked and do a mid-atmosphere pass just below the level of the planet's _Stratopause_ to retrieve them. Jarrad indicates the ALLIANCE will be assigned to Drakmär IV but he has been ordered to promote another ship Captain rather than make another transfer. This annoys O'Camp and Jarrad acknowledges this by asking him for a recommendation. Without hesitation, he indicates Straker but the red-haired Fleet Captain indicates he would rather keep his current assignment if possible. Jarrad responds the promotion includes a grade increase to Commodore and he is not sure how to address this since that rank does not usually hold his current posting. O'Camp asks to be indulged and recommends Dorvar-T who is the painfully _by the book_ Ops officer from the NARNIA who always makes Jarrad nervous by the way she is always quoting regulations. Jarrad indicates this is an unusual but understandable choice for First Officer. O'Camp interrupts and says that would be his choice for Captain but would choose a Nortanian for Executive Officer. At Jarrad's prompting, before the orders can be given he asks for whom O'Camp is thinking. Jarrad is surprised speechless when O'Camp slides over a PADD while announcing Laird Petmuus. Before Jarrad can recover, O'Camp details his idea. Commodore Straker would command the ships assigned to the task force supporting the ALLIANCE, including the SHROUD and others. Although the ALLIANCE is his command, he could still use the SHROUD as his home flagship much as O'Camp uses the ARCHANGEL while assigned to the Spacedock. He would then give Dorvar a merit promotion to Fleet Captain, making her the second shortest time in grade for Captain. This will also put her in roughly the equivalent rank as Petmuus if he were recommended by Hersh to be placed in the _command grade _of Major. Hersh agrees that Petmuus needs to take on a challenge by finally stepping up to the plate. Jarrad is not entirely convinced. He also indicates he would not be much as a commander if he did not give strong consideration to his senior most officers' input. He calls the two to attention and addresses them. He tells Dorvar that '_the book' _is the _best _guideline but it is still _just _a guideline and all lines need some flexibility or they are prone to break. A crew that breaks is a poor reflection on its commander. He tells her to remember to get to know the people, especially her department heads, because she is commanding the ship for Straker and that is the spirit of the Star Corps rather than checking policy before acting. He then addresses Petmuus saying the Nortanian may not agree with his new commander's _by the book _style but there is a place for it. He is a capable officer but now that he has a command position it is incumbent upon him to speak up and provide options as well as be willing to keep his commander on her toes when he thinks her decisions should be reconsidered. On that same note, Jarrad thinks the Captain of the ill-fated STORMWIND was out of line and Petmuus should have addressed this well before now. Jarrad is summarily expunging the record to give Petmuus the kick he needs. O'Camp comments Jarrad was right he did smile before the day was over. Jarrad says he is not done yet since Hersh has had the contract continued for another warship at the Aslan shipyards this will be named by O'Camp since he will be commanding it. O'Camp really smiles this time. Jarrad pauses and says in the interest of fairness, so O'Camp can get used to such a command, he will be in the center seat of the flagship for this mission while Jarrad borrows a Tactical Scout. Jarrad closes the meeting.

* * *

O'Camp visits Jarrad's quarters just before he leaves. He sees Jarrad is contacting the ship he is about to transport to. O'Camp suggests he use the ARCHANGEL instead as the vessel is tried and true. Jarrad says he had thought of it but O'Camp will need all the help he can get when he attacks the local Jerichan garrison. Besides the BABYLON IV has no First Officer so the current Captain will be his acting Executive Officer.

* * *

It takes the TANELORN almost two days at impulse to get from the _null zone _to the point where they are within striking distance of the Jerichan forces. They take the long way around so they will be attacking the far side and give the impression they are from Nortania. It is during this time O'Camp does some soul-searching in the Chapel. Hersh leads the first wave and so the group of Paladins leaves well before the rest. This gives the Alliance a chance to get things more completed. In order to facilitate this, one of the Engineering Support ships is taken out of commission. Dorvar calculates policy requirements dictate borrowing 42 personnel from each of the other craft. Petmuus suggests 55 from each of the capital ships and 10 from each of the assault craft along with 70 from each of the Grand Paladins. Dorvar admits to being puzzled by the unusual setup but acknowledges it gives a better balance of experience and expertise as well as making the process easier on the commanders who are donating people. She therefore asks Petmuus to issue the request on her behalf.

* * *

Jarrad waits more than half a day after the TANELORN departs to leave the null field. Having been aboard the ARCHANGEL on numerous occasions he is more than familiar with the layout of the hardy craft. It takes nearly a day to get to their contact point where the BABYLON IV is supposed to approach Delphite III and Jarrad uses that time to visit with the crew.

* * *

Jarrad gets the signal from the fleet after the Nortanians have committed the first wave and the Star Corps craft are about to engage. As the BABYLON enters the atmosphere, they begin the contact procedure. Part of the response is confusing, as the code seems to have been modified to include an instruction set with drivers for an external remote command. The Science Officer begins to analyze the instructions when the Communications Officer announces a distress call seems to be coming from the MERCY. Concerned a distress call might endanger their mission, Jarrad diverts the BABYLON to intercept the Destroyer. When they approach the site, the MERCY seems to be adrift. Scans of the ship are indeterminate and it is thought that apparent damage in the area of the computer core on the MERCY is scrambling the scan. As part of the mission profile, Jarrad is not willing to use active scans. Instead, he orders a remote command sent to discontinue the distress call. It works but there is feedback on the transmission. It briefly scrambles several key systems and during the brief confusion, the MERCY opens fire causing moderate damage. With the warp engines down, Jarrad orders the remaining drive be fed into the partially functioning quad phasers. Only two respond for a couple seconds causing mild damage. The blaster bars cause more mild damage but the angle of the shots is not good. It is not until Jarrad orders withdrawal and the undamaged aft Starburst launcher is used a _kill shot_ is achieved. The MERCY is destroyed but the BABYLON is crippled. As the planet looms large in the viewscreen it is announced that helm is unresponsive so they are in a dead stick hard fall. With the shuttle bay doors smashed, they cannot evacuate. The BABYLON IV crash-lands. Jarrad is awakened by a familiar voice who tells him it has been 5 hours since the crash. Only 27 survived which amounted to about 1/3 of the crew. They are hiding in an abandoned network post. They are using it to try to access the orbital Relay station. The Jerichans have been using the station to transmit a data stream containing some kind of virus in it. When the original team first arrived, the Wayfarer was doing standard scans upon arrival exploded and the Combat Shuttle was forced to crash-land. Since the craft had just been switched to tactical-approach mode, they were operating on thrusters only. That was when the Wayfarer went and the shuttle's systems all failed at once with the EPS and ODN systems all nullified. Once Jarrad woke fully he found it is Vine talking to him. When he asks why the recovery plan was not followed, he is informed since the mission parameters had changed Vine did not see as he had much choice. When Jarrad asks Vine what he means, the burly Striker answers the database needs to be decrypted in order to create a defense against the attack. They can view the database but are having problems downloading remotely because the Jerichans are installing firewalls. The big problem is time is running out since the Jerichans have sweeper teams searching the posts on the continent. They have been able to switch to using a new post 4 times so far but this is the last one they can use because of the unique design of the computer system. With the new personnel that survived the crash, Vine now has the people he needs to carry out an assignment to facilitate the mission. They have already set traps in and around the BABYLON IV wreckage but they need to return and pick up some more supplies and extra parts. Another team will be sent out to a nearby post to get the Jerichan attention as a distraction. Jarrad interrupts by asking when he gets to establish some input on his subordinates. Vine calmly tells Jarrad if he has a better idea he needs to come up with it very soon. Jarrad agrees but says Vine needs at least to pay lip service to the chain-of-command. Jarrad informs Vine that O'Camp is being given command of a new Alliance-class warship. Since the Corps has just reassigned the ARCHANGEL's current Detachment Commander, Tunn now holds the Colonel position for the sector's Regimental command, and Vine is the new administrator for the Battalion. Since O'Camp wants the Angry Angels assigned to his new ship, the multi-discipline Striker Battalion has been given permanent assignment to the Strike Force again. The Royal Rangers will be given parallel assignment to the sector's Brigade so their unique talents can be made available to Vine's command. Since this will be promoting Vine to a Flag rank, it will afford him greater access to resources. The two spell out the best way to detail the actions and then Jarrad gives the orders.

* * *

The Alliance and Jerichan forces are just about evenly matched. Both the Nortanian Royal Paladins and the Jerichan Blitzen class fighters prove nearly untouchable for different reasons. The Jerichan Fatherships and the Nortanian Paladins are faring the worst by comparison. In the first wave, the R'ahl Wayfarers were assigned to strike some of the capital ships with their heavy weapons pack. They also fare so well against the older Donner class the Jerichans actually withdraw those craft and O'Camp gives the R'ahl Wing Commander permission to continue operations at her discretion. The new Rogue X class is also acquitting itself very nicely. O'Camp had admitted some reservations about holding the _center seat _on the flagship even though he had briefly been First Officer on the previous model. In order to get a feel for the 2/3 of the crew he had not worked with directly before, he had instated a series of drills on the trip to the garrison. While evaluating the drills he modifies, transfers, or orders follow up on numerous duty positions. As part of the greater scheme of the drills, he ensures the fleet action is conducted multiple times in simulation rather than simply ordering general parameters for various ships to abide by. O'Camp responds to inquiries about this change in policy by indicating the Nortanians always do things the Drakmärian way and he wants to honor the Nortanian method this time. The Drakmärian officers all agree although they are not convinced the method is particularly efficient. As a result, O'Camp strongly suggests a senior Nortanian officer be assigned to bridge duty of each ship for the duration. The plan is working wonderfully. Even the ALLIANCE is faring well as Petmuus has plenty of prior combat experience and Dorvar is well read on the works of numerous prominent leaders. Ses had been offered to join Jarrad but the engineer claimed he always wanted to work aboard the flagship. This is cover to keep an eye on O'Camp's health problems. The Trill came up with a treatment similar to what the late Vitro had used on the late Dermon. O'Camp comments he has not been that nauseous since being involved in the Advanced Tactical Training program. Part of the program included experiencing the effects of an Etuman Screamer device. It is interesting for a Deaf race to have made the most advances where sound was concerned. A sonic stunner that completely disorients **_and_** leaves its target effectively incapacitated for some time after the primary effect wears off is quite effective. Fortunately, for O'Camp the treatment's effects are only temporary. He likens them to an intense but brief version of the implantation series when he was given the RNA sequences, which are causing the problems now. The problem was he had an experimental sequence to enhance his artificial biological signature for ID scans. This sequence somehow incorporated into the neurological disorder he had developed as a child. He had dealt with a serotonin deficiency, which was common with certain unusually high IQs, and the RNA had the side-affect of increasing the levels of neurotransmitters. This combination over time had begun to compromise his neurological pathways on a very basic level. Ses is using a series of neurotransmitter boosters to overcompensate along with a mild neurotoxin as a delivery agent. O'Camp is not only having very vivid dreams but also a sense of euphoria. That euphoria is enhanced by the admiration the Drakmärians are expressing for the Nortanian craft. This is the first time this many or variety of craft from the different fleets have operated together and they are naturally adjusting to cooperate. Sleds are covering the Grand Paladins; Stingers are backing up the Combat Shuttles and Wayfarers; and other such combinations. Right after O'Camp warns everyone to be on the alert since Straker has reminded him that Jerichans are known for making surprise extreme maneuvers, the Jerichans make a sudden concentrated attack. This focuses on the RAYLEE Bird's starboard wing and takes the Royal Paladin out of the fight temporarily. This briefly causes a loss of momentum in the Nortanian offensive and the Jerichans take advantage of this by attacking the PRIMUS. McCollin has moved the PRIMUS closer to the Nortanians so he and Hersh can coordinate operations. The Jerichans wind up destroying the PRIMUS' portside primary power coupling. This causes serious problems as it cuts off the engineering team for the affected section and the damage control personnel are incapacitated by the damage. McCollin himself heads to the starboard coupling to transfer the load of power needs saying his home has always been in engineering and his First Officer does not argue. While McCollin is doing his duty, the PRIMUS is boarded. The boarders move swiftly and plant a bomb in the section assigned to house the on-axis warp field generator, which balances the field for high-warp travel. This section is one aft of the main bridge and centered between the bottom and top decks. When the bomb goes off, it blows the interlocks holding all but the front of the bridge in place. The bridge module is blown clear of its housing but remains intact until it gets to where it is at 50º to the hull. This is the point where the shearing force on the remaining interlocks proves too much. Since the interlocks are manufactured of neutronium and are able to withstand excessive strain, the bulkheads on the front of the bridge give way instead. Because the feed from the warp controller is on a direct hard-line to the 3d warp nacelle it too overloads. This causes the starboard primary power coupling to fail and the resulting explosion looks like a large bite was taken out of the PRIMUS. McCollin is narrowly rescued when another section of the hallway he is in suddenly becomes exposed to space and the suction sweeps him off his feet. He travels about 15 meters and is about to be sucked into space when a Lunärian grabs him right as he is about to pass out from not being able to breathe from the suction's force.

* * *

Aboard the TANELORN, O'Camp watches in disbelief and horror as the PRIMUS splits in half and comments how appropriate that symbolism is in light of Drakmärian politics. When the Jerichans begin doing strafing runs on the evacuating escape craft, O'Camp orders the ARCHANGEL and other lighter craft to run interdiction.

* * *

Aboard the ALLIANCE, Dorvar orders McCollin be transported to the conference room and has a medical team waiting. While McCollin is regaining his senses, Dorvar quotes the policy ceding command to the superior officer. Petmuus states he wishes she would have consulted him first but states he can get down to engineering to help, as it is likely needed. Dorvar replies the reason she did not confer is she is leaving him in his position. She can think of multiple reasons a change would not be beneficial now. She spells them out for McCollin and he concurs. When Straker is informed, he compliments the two officers on their ability to work together. Before the RAYLEE Bird can get back in the fight, one Grand Paladin is destroyed and two more suffer enough damage to be forced to withdraw from the fight. Of the Drakmärian craft, 3 have been destroyed, 8 more are crippled enough to be out of the fight and 12 more are still in the fight but are in need of significant repair. The Jerichans are faring about the same if a little worse. The Jerichans do not damage as easily yet their damage control protocol is not as refined. With the Nortanian flagship back in the fray, it wings up with the TANELORN. The two fleets regroup and rally to the point where the Jerichan garrison is forced into a strategic withdrawal.

* * *

On Delphite III, both 5-man teams are on their way back when they encounter problems. The team led by Xark succeeds in distracting the Jerichan Troopers but when they set off the traps to cover their return, they are spotted. Jarrad watches helplessly from the post's observation center. It is nearly 15 kilometers away but the image enhancers do the job. The team is on the move outnumbered more than 20-1 and 3 of them are killed within seconds. Xark grabs the other Lunärian when the other's leg is nearly blown off at the knee. Xark gets both of them to cover and they manage to hold off the Jerichans for a short time with one of them using a phaser rifle and the other using two phasers. Jarrad wants to help and Vine says they can, using sniper fire, but that would endanger their position. After neutralizing over a dozen attackers, the other Lunärian succumbs to his injuries and Xark is clearly overwhelmed as well as cutoff. Xark activates his communicator and announces he is _on his way back and to ready the doors_. He then charges off to the direction of another LINC to the WNW even though the post everyone is hiding in is located to the NE. He manages to get several meters before he is struck over a dozen times. It is obvious to Jarrad that his friend is dead before he hits the ground. The other team is returning from a supply run to the BABYLON IV when they have an encounter with a group of non-Alliance soldiers, but is they who initiate the contact. It turns out to be Romulans. The Romulans actually surrender since their weapons are nearly depleted and they have wounded. The Alliance troops do not allow the Romulans to explain since they are observing strict mission silence. At the LINC Jarrad is getting worried since the Jerichans launched a flight of fighters to search in the direction Xark was traveling before he was killed. Jarrad recognizes the search pattern and realizes once they scan the other routing station the fighters will eventually find the LINC they are using. After several hours, a flight of Rogues shows and tears through the Donner-class fighters. The Rogues have a more difficult time with the Blitzen fighters. Despite being outnumbered better than 3-1, the Rogues hold their own and lead the Blitzens away from the LINC. The final Sled is close to being overwhelmed by the remaining 2 Jerichans and goes into a power dive. Vine informs Jarrad it is a little known design weakness the Blitzen needs to be at a slight horizontal angle since most of their control surfaces are pitch related. One of the Blitzens terminates the pursuit by pulling up and gives the Sled's gunner a perfect shot at the fighter's belly. The Sled is too maneuverable for the other Blitzen to get a shot so it accelerates to get closer. Jarrad is still watching from the observation post and is softly chanting _"pull up, pull up, pull up..." _Without thinking, he reaches toward the communication toggle of his Datalink. Vine reaches over and gently yet firmly grips the Admiral's wrist and recommends against the course of action. Jarrad watches sickened, as there is a series of explosions immediately after the two craft disappear into the distant tree line. The team trying to decrypt the database is getting nowhere since the software overrides of the hardware firewalls are having limited effectiveness. The Jerichan firewalls are unique since they allow limited penetration into a multi-tiered system. This means rather than having multiple codecs in one firewall, each firewall is hardwired with a specific codec and each codec is integrated into the other tiers of the system. All of these hard linked codecs must be bypassed simultaneously or the unaffected links will reset the rest once the next series of firewalls are being addressed. Since the firewalls are dynamic, an attempt to leave an inverse cascading virus on the next progressive stage codec when the previous one closes fails. Several attempts are made to open multiple firewalls to scan for traces of the cascade to no avail. One of Vine's subordinates informs him they may be able to employ the wreckage of the Combat Shuttle. They are using the geothermal power station under the LINC to recharge the shuttle's batteries. When they arrive, Jarrad comments he prefers the warmth and humidity of the cavern to the stiff coolness above in the area surrounding the LINC. Pr'gn and T-V get to work rebuilding the remains into a remote drone. They want to integrate the mission parameters into the computer's system profile, but neither engineer has the requisite skill set and all the program designers are occupied keeping the firewalls busy. Everything goes fine until they initiate launch. As soon as they kick in the main engines to achieve escape velocity, an immediate overload causes the shuttle to crash and a massive feedback surge within the console dedicated as the remote control. A technician informs them the uplink to the Relay station has been interrupted by the surge and must be reestablished. The problem is it took nearly a day the last time to create the link alone and another day to get the bandwidth and signal integrity to sufficient strength for data transfer. This time is much riskier since the Jerichans are looking for them and the communication surge has likely gotten their attention. Minutes later a Corporal shows up and informs them a scout team monitoring the progress of the Jerichan's search is now reporting the Jerichans are on their way. The Jerichans were scouting the cavern system when the explosion caught their attention. A quick calculation estimates they will navigate the cavern system within the next 15-20 minutes so they need to establish a beachhead now. The usual interservice and interspecies rivalry evaporates and the personnel with combat training take up positions according to their specialties. Vine and T-V suggest Jarrad and Pr'gn head topside but Jarrad is hesitant to make the more than 2-kilometer hike through an unsecured area during a time of conflict. The two find themselves relegated to the observation deck attached to the entrance of the Thermal Conversion facility. Jarrad finds he is uncomfortable with the climate in the cavern since he is accustomed to the controlled environment of the flagship. He asks for a Nortanian encounter suit since the item would prove ideal for his discomfort. Unfortunately, with the unique physical structure of the Nortanians even the largest outfit does not fit right. A solution is found when the Drakmärians make adjustments to a Combat Rig. They remove all the covering from the harness setup and strip most of the excess ablative material. Pr'gn comments the abbreviated tank top and 3/4 leggings remind him of an ancient swimming garment. If it were not for the integrated harness system having unique protective and storage properties, the skintight outfit would make him look like some kind of exotic dancer. Since a couple of the martial arts styles Jarrad has studied double as dance styles for various reasons, he jokingly moves a few steps. This is broadcast over the local holographic communication system and his response has the desired effect. Ripples of laughter wave throughout the cavern and the near-palpable stress is temporarily broken from the atmosphere. Vine helps the Admiral connect his Compression Phaser Carbine to the Rig as Pr'gn gets some last-minute pointers on some specialized attachments to his preferred Nortanian Bolt-Rifle. There is now a bipod as well as a 15-centimeter extension on the barrel. Another addition is a scope mount as well as a lever adding a high-energy charge to the projectile, causing it to explode. The ammunition feed port is now 3 times as wide and when more then one bolt feed is inserted the weapon will fire fully automatic. There is still a button making the weapon capable of loading more then one bolt at a time to be fired up to 5 at once. When fired this way, the bolts create a spread pattern having an effect similar to a Lunärian Flechette Cannon. With the barrel extension, the number of bolts fired this way is now doubled. Pr'gn does not care for either of these types of discharge. O'Camp taught him years ago the finer points of being a sharpshooter to the point where he has learned a high degree of confidence. Pr'gn has no idea that confidence is about to be shaken by the vastly superior skills of Captain Vine. When Jarrad asks if Pr'gn wants something more comfortable to wear the engineer replies that living for years on an asteroid has made him used to this type of atmosphere. As they talk, Jarrad makes some final adjustments on his weapon. He prefers the Compression Carbine since it is able to fire faster and longer making it the energy equivalent of the fully automatic function of the Bolt-Rifle. The only drawback is functionally it is not as flexible as a standard phaser is. Although Vine has been carrying around a unique weapon colored flat black, he now chooses to use a standard heavy Battle Phaser Rifle. Vine takes up position next to the access to the Observation Deck and requests all positions sound off. As they comply, Vine makes a series of taps on the holographic interface to his Datalink. When they are all done, Vine uploads the information on the distribution to Jarrad's Datalink. Vine then comments since he is now Flag Rank, he has authority over rank determination. He then splits the primary Angry Angels team in half and places the Corporal who reported the Jerichan advance in charge and promotes him to Sergeant. The man's last name is Tigliani but he goes by the handle Tiger. The female Sergeant who had been O'Camp's pilot 6 months ago whose handle is Diamond, now addressed by Vine as _Pepper, _is placed in command of the 2 teams and promoted to junior Lieutenant. Jarrad laughs at the Sergeant's name and begins humming an ancient Earth tune. To which Vine replies is exactly how she got the nickname. Diamond is the only card not mentioned in the song that is not an insult to her dark skin tone. Jarrad then adds that although Pr'gn's title in Drakmärian society is _Constable _and the family suffix is -W, his official rank is _Captain Emeritus _although he is technically Commodore of the Engineering Corps. T-V reminds Pr'gn since he is now part of the civilian oversight of a branch of the Star Corps, he should remember she was partly responsible for the engineering miracle that saved the day and got him promoted. There are a few minutes of merciless teasing throughout the ranks at Pr'gn's expense. Pr'gn responds in reference to the _Captain Emeritus _title by taking a marking tool and drawing a large 'E' on his chest. Vine cuts in by reminding everyone the Admiral is listening and, after a pause, asks them to _speak up so the old man can hear them_. Jarrad gives the Striker a dirty look before joining in the laughter. Vine then admonishes them all to _'maintain' _and instantly all 2 dozen plus warriors settle to the task at hand. One final comment slips through from a voice with a Drakmärian accent proclaiming _whoever made the time estimate for the Jerichan attack must have had a Nortanian on his team helping make the calculation _as a reply when it is observed the Jerichans are now more than a minute overdue.

* * *

Aboard the TANELORN, Ops informed O'Camp the Jerichans are slowly pulling back and this is stretching the Alliance forces thin. O'Camp orders a halt of advance until all ships are back in formation. He also orders all fightercraft to intensify their attack. Several hours ago, he had dispatched a flight of fighters to determine the status of the BABYLON IV's mission since he has been hoping to have heard from them by now. A report from Tactical informs him there is a change in the telemetry emanating from the Relay Station. Previously the station seemed to be in a diagnostic mode. There is now some kind of energetic emissions evident. O'Camp asks the Nortanians to send a wing of Paladins to Delphite III and remain cloaked to help with keeping track of events. He then calls a fleet conference. The conference room fills up with the holographic images of the command staff from nearly all the Alliance craft. A Juggernaut has main power down, a Battleship has no communication system, and a Destroyer is represented by a Lieutenant jg who just yesterday was a Security Team Leader. The young officer had been assigned to protect Engineering and had not even been on a bridge until this morning. When the Captain was incapacitated and the First Officer killed, he was assigned to Tactical. Right now, the more senior bridge officers are attending to damage control so he has been left with the Conn. The communication from a Frigate is fading in and out and at times, the visual disappears entirely. So far, 7 ships are destroyed, 19 incapacitated, and all the rest but 3 have sustained mild yet moderate damage. Enough to need repairs before returning to a Starbase. This final category includes the flagship. The TANELORN's warp drive is out, the starboard Atomizer is off-line, there are 28 sections on reserve power and life support has been compromised on many of the outer decks. Since the ARCHANGEL's primary ODN system is down, O'Camp orders it docked with the flagship. He tells Ses he wants the cloak to have priority and to ensure integrity of the subspace field so warp power can be made available at a moment's notice. He then reiterates this command for all craft. He wants every craft to be ready for combat operations in 30 minutes. Any craft not having full propulsion will remain and guard those who are not at full combat capacity. The fighter contingent is pulled from the flagship as preparation for a special assignment. About a dozen craft remain behind when the fleet re-engages. Commodore Straker is left in charge even though the TANELORN remains in the fight briefly. Only moments after the flagship quietly departs, there is a message the ALLIANCE has been boarded. O'Camp comments he is glad McCollin is with the flagship to work on the ARCHANGEL. With the warship being incomplete, the Jerichans have a more difficult time trying to disable the ALLIANCE. Petmuus leads the defense and even the Royal Rangers find his leadership acceptable despite the history they have been ordered to overlook. For a time it looks as if the boarders may capture the warship since the crew is so spread out. Some innovative strategy and the incomplete nature of the construction is used to the crew's advantage and saves the ship. 5 craft of those left behind rejoin the attack and 2 which had originally joined the cloaked assault return to the fallback line. Straker orders a change to a multi-pronged attack. The uncloaked ships will make a hard advance and the cloaked ones will perform a flanking maneuver while employing a Jerichan-style series of sweep strikes along the lines as they progress. For a time this has the effect of throwing the enemy garrison into complete disarray. Then the Jerichans do something completely unexpected by taking a defensive posture and advancing. Straker is puzzled until he realizes they have figured out what the Star Corps fleet is doing there.

* * *

When the Jerichans begin their assault on the cavern, 3 of the defenders fall within the first minute. The battle is so furious at times it is difficult to figure out what is happening. The energy exchange is so intense Jarrad and Pr'gn comment simultaneously about "_the fog of war_" and Jarrad finds himself sliding his HUD spectacles to his forehead on a couple occasions to get a better view. When he first put the device on he found it mildly disorienting and comments he now has a fresh respect for the Etumans and their EAR device, which the HUD is patterned after. He decides a little discomfort is worth it after getting complaints of close shots resulting in allies querying on which side he is. Pr'gn is pleased with his shooting skill since out of 18 shots he has neutralized 9 and completely incapacitated 3 more. Vine replies the term _'neutralized' _is a farce since once they get medical attention they will come back armed and angry. Vine asks the engineer if he would congratulate himself if he went hunting and only wounded his prey. Essentially, he would go hungry. Pr'gn comments it is not that easy to get an ideal shot with all the activity and points out the opposing sniper on the far side of the cavern. Pr'gn has already fired 7 shots at him during the conversation but seems to have no effect to this point. Vine indicates the sniper is of little threat since he is not in a position to do much harm with the relative position of the Alliance personnel. It has been planned that way since the location is an obvious snipe point. The sniper has fired about 20 shots and only done minor damage to equipment and a slight bit of annoyance from ricochets. Vine coaches Pr'gn on how to be more accurate with the shot but 3 shots later, the adopted Drakmärian is still unable to make the hit. Vine leans back around the corner so he can actually see the area in question, makes a slight adjustment to his weapon, and pauses for a second to ask Pr'gn if he is paying attention. Vine laughs when Pr'gn says this reminds him of when O'Camp trained him how to shoot. Vine says O'Camp is a very good shot but is not very patient. He adds the Admiral is accurate and efficient but lacking in finesse. His Irish sense of humor and style means he is always looking to act. Whoever trained him has done a good job since he is not only capable with multiple species' weapons designs but also seems confident about using them. O'Camp is a natural in combat, which is unusual for a former Chaplain. To this point, Vine is satisfied with Pr'gn's shooting, which is a testament to O'Camp's teaching. It takes a good warrior to be an effective teacher. Unfortunately, that does not always translate well in the realm of _'one shot one kill'_. As Vine utters the _sniper's creed_, he fires. Strangely enough, for an instant Pr'gn thinks the Striker has missed since the image he sees through the image enhancer scope does not move at all. Jarrad pauses in his shooting to give the Striker an odd look and makes an adjustment to his eyeset. He utters the Drakmärian exclamation of amazement "_to the front_" as the Jerichan sniper seems to fall in slow motion into the thick of the battle.

* * *

With the TANELORN away from the fleet attending to the loss of contact with Jarrad's team, Straker transfers to the ALLIANCE to help conduct operations. Dorvar suggests to Straker for Petmuus take over command of the SHROUD. The heavier craft are ordered to interdict the Jerichan fleet and force them to alter their path into the Shadowlands. This has the effect of slowing down the Jerichan advance as well as making them less aggressive in the tighter spaces. It also makes the enemy fighter cover less effective. It is a much-needed reprieve in the battle.

* * *

Since the sniper was also coordinating the battle by acting as Action Controller, the assault quickly melts. The Jerichans mysteriously withdraw even though they are not at a distinct disadvantage. Usually if they think they are losing, they have the tendency to cover their retreat with a suicide run. This has taken place on several occasions, the most significant was when a crippled Fathership had crash-landed onto Lucius, and this led some to believe the Cruiser entering Drakmär IV's atmosphere during the _Reckoning _incident was intended as a distraction. It was further thought the distortion field around the capitol caused the Jerichans to get an inaccurate fix and the ship was maneuvering for position to impact with the city when it came under intense ground fire from multiple types of weapons discharges. With the existing damage, the Fathership was unable to defend against such a broad spectrum of weaponry. This led to the further belief the ensuing impact with the Nortanian Grand Paladin was no accident. This current situation is radically different. There is a sense of disarray to their withdrawal. Almost like they are falling over themselves in the process of the maneuver. The rearward Troopers are still advancing as the forward ones are withdrawing and this makes the bottleneck at the back of the cavern even worse. Vine suggests Jarrad order all positions be condensed and a defensive posture be taken. Jarrad hears _Red _and _Blue _teams announce they are _peeling _and _White _is _holding the line_. White stands fast and holds fire although the Jerichan withering fire makes for some close ricochets. Jarrad watches as the other two teams stagger their odd type of leapfrog so they almost seem to coordinate with each other even though they are actually acting independently.

* * *

The team returning from the BABYLON decides to allow the Romulans to use their hand phasers as they get closer to the base due to the heavier presence of Jerichans and the sounds of combat. Since the Romulans outnumber the Strikers more than 2 to 1, the Strikers send them in first when they arrive at the entrance to the caverns. The Romulans surprise and engage a large group of Jerichans who rapidly disperse. As they progress farther into the caverns, the Strikers relieve the Romulans of all weapons for safety reasons.

* * *

Once the cavern has been cleared, the injured are attended. Out of 28, there are 4 dead and 12 wounded. Since the Jerichans retrieve their dead, it is difficult to get an accurate count but there were about 2.5+ times as many or about 68-72. Using various methods of calculation, there is an average of about one kill per defender or about 30. Depending on the method, they calculate another 10-35 wounded. There is some contradiction between the sensor replay and the personnel testimony. Partway through getting all the injured stabilized, there is a shout hailing the cavern. Several defenders advance toward the opening and take up positions. It turns out to be the returning patrol from the BABYLON and the Romulans. A fully uniformed Jarrad does not want to trust the Romulans at first until even the Drakmärians from the patrol vouch for them. Pr'gn is about to set up a demolition unit to seal off the cavern when Vine gets a call. He pauses a second and tells the caller to progress at their own discretion. When Jarrad asks what is happening he is told an observer has spotted some suspicious activity outside one of the entrances to the caverns. Minutes later, as Jarrad is about to head back to the LINC a Royal Ranger escorts two men wearing pilot jumpsuits. Jarrad is elated but Salvador and Tannor are nonplussed saying they have survived being shot down before. Back up in the LINC all are briefed on the situation. The mission is deemed a failure. There is no way to access the database. They are now remotely trying to corrupt the database. They are able to contact the Relay but are having trouble initiating the protocol to shut the system down. T-V jokes to Pr'gn it is unfortunate they do not have a warp engine they can throw at them. One of the Strikers comments _'oh great, capital T is picking up Pr'gn's sense of humor_' as Pr'gn laughs in response to the Lunärians comment. Jarrad gives the two an odd look, pauses while thinking for a second, and shakes his head in amazement with a look of disbelief on his face. The Engineer then suggests the theory might work if they used the concept of _throwing a hammer_ at them. Since the Jerichans already know they are trying to break in, use one concentrated attack instead of several sneaky ones. Even though the crashed fighter's warp drive is out, they can still remote the fighter to dock with the Relay. They can then use it as a subspace shunt to access the database. The Strikers move the disabled fighter to the LINC's landing pad where the crew, along with Pr'gn and T-V, get to work on effecting repairs and preparing it for the job they need. A major problem comes up when the fighter's computer will not reboot. A quick brainstorming session determines someone must fly the fighter up there and Tannor takes the job. After removing the warp engine, T-V comes up with an idea and also removes the engine from the Combat Shuttle. She tells the Strikers to place them after making some modifications. Since the Sled's power supply must be diverted from the weaponry in order to attain flight, the engine ports spew conversion residue badly. Even though Tannor keeps the fighter at _'deck' _level until he hits the horizon, the Jerichans still spot the liftoff and fire on it. This damages the craft even further.

* * *

Aboard the TANELORN, O'Camp goes to visit Ses. The Trill Chief Engineer is happy to report almost all of the minor damage is repaired but Ses decides to wait on non-mission critical repairs. O'Camp agrees the bulkheads in the school areas can wait. The depths of the flagship's educational system has warped bulkheads and the closer to the inert inner hull one gets the worse the damage is. The outermost bulkheads have twisted and collapsed, effectively sealing off the section. Ses has also seen to many of the major repairs. He then admits some will have to wait. He has learned while serving on an Earth Navy ship in the 20th century that sometimes ensuring repairs to all the mild-to-moderate damage is more important than insisting all the major damage is fixed. The two men then head to the aft ventral storage bay where the ARCHANGEL is docked. Ramoth, the Tactical Scout's cybernetically-enhanced genetically-engineered commander, who usually holds the position of First Officer/Chief of Operations is hard at work alongside her Chief Engineer. The engineer is Cardassian, a former Gul named Verdal who came to the Alliance after becoming disgusted and disillusioned with the political nature that is accepted norm within his people. O'Camp originally met the engineer through a mutual friend, the Bajoran Vedek Keurh who is living in a self-imposed exile to protest the leadership of the current Kai. The unusual friendship led to the Chaplaincy sponsoring a number of both races into the Officer Corps. The Tactical Officer/acting First Officer is a very dark-skinned Drakmärian named Ts'huuk. Her hair has an unusual genetic anomalous coloring, instead of being the blue-black it is red-black. It is the same genetic disorder marker that makes J'Cinda's eyes amethyst. The CMO aboard the NARNIA has this defect affecting her finger and toenails. It is getting more common in females but is rare in males. The defect is thought to be caused by female Drakmärians having a child with another species, specifically human or Vulcan. This rumor was disproved but the reverse of a male Drakmärian doing interbreeding was not investigated so as not to insult the PRIMUS. They report the ARCHANGEL is badly hurt. 3 of the 5 warp cores are currently inoperative and since the low-low cannot hold as much of a load as the median setting core, some adjustments have to be made. The median core being run on an inverse polarity is the best defense against the inverter weapon but the power requirements dictate normalizing the power settings. They are trying to change the yield/intensity rating on the other core but there is a cascade series of repairs hampering the effort. One of the human engineers calls it a _domino effect _created by a plasma filter restricting the amount of power being fed through the system since the field in the starboard engine is weakened from the housing being damaged. The housing has been patched but in order to increase the flow pressure the engine should be shut down cold for the unit to be replaced and re-primed. With primary weapon automation inoperative, they will have to reboot the main computer and do a diagnostic on all systems relying on the subspace field. Verdal is not overly concerned with defensive systems due to the ARCHANGEL's nature. Despite this fact, he would still want to pursue the diagnostic anyway just so those systems could be used as backup sources in emergency. Knowing the status of these systems would be beneficial but would be too intensive on a grand scale so the procedure is considered impractical. Most offensive weaponry is down. The quad phasers are the only weapons close to being stable and only the two upper ones are operational. All the blaster bars are shattered and they are only going to replace the bottom and aft ones on the front. The ones on the sides have had lower-grade phaser strips rigged into place. The Cardassian says the replacement job is sloppy by his standards but he has ensured they will do the job. The forward torpedo launcher needs to be replaced but a Nortanian officer has rigged up the probe conveyor system to act as a makeshift Starburst launcher. Verdal says although the exchange officer is fairly new to Drakmärian technology, his hunger for knowledge and desire to get the job done makes him a valued member of the team. He has made a habit of having the particular team on constant standby. The appointed team leader has no problem with the Nortanian taking the lead on most projects since the being has a clear respect for the command structure and his superior's rank. Although the Nortanian has only been with the exchange program for a month and the ARCHANGEL but a week, O'Camp asks Verdal for any recommendations. The teams are shuffled and the Nortanian is made a team leader and shift supervisor. Unfortunately, the aft torpedo launcher is a total loss but a makeshift type of mortar system capable of being manually loaded, aimed, and fired one torpedo at a time is constructed by McCollin. They still have about 8 1/2 hours until they reach sensor range of Delphite III. O'Camp tells them he has a special mission for them and the engineering department will need to be in top form if he is correct. Ses spells out some details from conclusions made aboard the TANELORN. They have been analyzing data from multiple sources to determine the best course of action to resolve the situation. The flagship has a special mission to do but the ARCHANGEL needs to take on a special assignment for the mission to work. O'Camp extends words of confidence and encouragement knowing his personal flagship has been through worse and survived. They all spend a few moments joking around about the ARCHANGEL's reputation and the TANELORN's reputation as they compared to each other. Ses and Verdal, the two ships respective Chief Engineers, make a few competitive exchanges in the Cardassian language. O'Camp then comments this will take split-second timing so he wants the ODN and EPS systems to be given priority but the primary warp controllers are not likely to be used so the main engines can likely wait. The commanders and engineers make their way to the TANELORN's engineering section. The display complex is more suitable to demonstrate fully the plan being laid out. After everyone has given their input on the mission, O'Camp asks for options on making some modifications to the weapons. McCollin says he has some ideas and a team is composed to support the ideas. As the meeting is about to be dispersed, O'Camp admits he has some serious reservations about this action succeeding. He is gravely concerned about the loss of life and resources within the past day. He wants everyone to be 100 on the details of this and to speak up if there are any alternatives or criticisms. After the meeting breaks up, O'Camp makes his way to spend some time meditating in the Chapel. He finds he is not alone in this as there about a couple dozen present. All are from non-critical support positions and are off duty at this point. More than half are injured. After several of them approach him for prayer the ship's Chaplain, who is also the Assistant Chief of Science, asks him if he wants to say a few words. O'Camp tells the Oriental woman he is no longer part of the Chaplaincy but when several more voice encouragement, he decides to speak informally.

* * *

Aboard the ALLIANCE, Straker is very concerned since they are moving so quickly. The flagship is discreetly trying to approach Delphite III and is making sure but steady progress even if it is relatively slow. The Jerichans the fleet is pursuing are not concerned about how they proceed as long as they do it quickly. They are using tractor beams and deflector emitters to _'hack and slash' _their way through the cacophony of the Shadowlands as fast as possible. The side effect is it is such a _'dirty' _process even the specially calibrated scanners aboard the Nortanian ships are seriously impeded. Aboard the GENTAR Falcon, Hersh consults with Straker via the Holo-com to let him know he is leaving the Shadowlands to make for Delphite III using the long way around but as fast as possible. Straker agrees and states Dorvar was addressing a similar idea. Hersh also reports leaving the plasma fields will help them to relieve the load on their power system. The plasma distribution net is severely compromised and the Shadowlands' nature is hampering efforts to correct and repair the problem. Their weapons systems are crippled although they have been able to isolate propulsion and maintain impulse drive integrity. Since the CHI'LA-A is among the ships in the group forced to stay behind after the initial attack, the KRIZU, VOYAGER, OUTLOOK, and T'KWN all join the SHROUD in taking the point of the pursuit. Making an attack through the nearly nebula-like soup is literally _hit-and-miss _at best, as Tactical acquisition cannot make a determined lock and firing is made manually. The Jerichans have a slight advantage by dropping mines bringing about the end of VOYAGER and OUTLOOK. Following the destruction of the heavy cruiser DRAKMÄR over a year ago, the crew and mission was assigned to a heavier and more powerful hull design intended as the first sister ship for the flagship. The new ship was named in honor of the fallen vessel but in a more traditional vein, the native version was wanted to be used. This meant the dockmaster of the shipyard was told to rename the Tactical Scout already using the name. Since the ship in question is the patrol partner of the T'KWN, the crew requested the name R'TNN, which is also a type of bladed weapon. The renamed attack craft now takes up position at the lead as well. The dynamic and fluid nature of the Shadowlands means as the Jerichans sweep their way through, the field quickly reforms. This makes an interesting venture for all involved. The Alliance craft are less than point-blank range behind their opponents but neither side can effectively attack the other. The fightercraft are useless and nearly impossible to control and are all brought in to land. Due to lack of system optimization, the ALLIANCE has nearly burned out its Atomizer after 3 shots. The Nortanian engineering team manages to find the perfect balance of settings and recalibrates the superweapon with only a minor set of parts needing replaced to get the unit functional again. They also manage to manufacture a second unit to place in the starboard housing since there was not one installed before departure. Straker has both fired with mixed results. They work normally and operate within normal parameters but the situation limits the results. The beams drill through the residue but quickly lose focal integrity and leave a cone shaped void. Having the lightest hull classes in front means they are able to run interdiction on the mines being dropped. The Jerichans keep moving their formation by repositioning the location of the various craft as well as randomly tightening and loosening the formation to lessen the effectiveness of any incoming attack. This also reduces the effectiveness of the mine-laying tactic. This progression of strategy on both fleets' parts makes for an effective stalemate.

* * *

Jarrad watches and helps as they follow Tannor's progress. The pilot docks with the Relay Station and makes his way to do a _hard link _with the Control Interface System. After stabilizing the wounded, DaMoreda comes and has a chat with the Grand Fleet Admiral. He admits to being gravely concerned with their situation. Vine has told him the attack in the cavern was likely the typical feint as part of Jerichan protocol. The cost has already been too high and Jarrad's insides are in a knot. He also cannot keep his thoughts on the task at hand with thoughts of what is going on with the fleet and his flagship. The BABYLON was supposed to make contact more than a day ago. O'Camp will likely follow orders no matter the cost. This means if the Jerichans have as large a force as estimated, both here on the planet _and _at the local fleet garrison, this location is not just another emplacement. Delphite III is instead a command installation just like Serendipity Station. He is concerned if the situation gets out of control, O'Camp will order the fleet to hold the line until he hears from Jarrad. This means they should not expect any backup. When Vine, T-V, and Samson return with the others on their patrol, They report their suspicions are correct. They are outnumbered at better than 3 to 1 and the liftoff has pinpointed the location of allied forces. The Jerichans are on their way and are now making good time. The most direct route has a choke point through a valley about 3.5 kilometers away and they placed T-V's surprise there. As everyone is getting prepared for the attack, Vine asks to see Jarrad's Phaser Compression Rifle. In a couple deft moves, The Striker disassembles the weapon which Jarrad protests. Vine explains the weapon is useful and flexible for most uses. Except this one. The weapon's body is not very sturdy and is impractical for close combat should it become _hand-to-hand_. The weapon also has 4 emitters and 6 power cells, 2 for each primary and another for each backup. These are all sorely needed for the upcoming battle. He hands Jarrad another weapon called a _Stout _and then trains him and the Romulans as well as several others who are not experienced in its use. Samson wants a refresher on the weapon since he was only given a basic overview when they were first issued on the Spacedock. Pr'gn admits he is just looking for some overdue major payback. During the training, it is discovered the Romulans are from a battlecruiser protecting a listening post cut off from the Empire due to the Jerichan advance. None of those on the post survived the abandonment. The listening post was monitoring the Jerichans and became concerned when they lost contact with Ch'Rhihan following some intelligence about a special program being developed by the Jerichans. The commander thought it safer to surrender to the Alliance than be captured by the Supremacy. The battlecruiser had been there to defend the post. When the post had been attacked, much of the sensitive equipment had been loaded into a Scout ship. The next attack had killed the crews of the post and Scout. The only member of the Scout's crew aboard the craft at the time was a member of the Romulan underground and he had survived. The D'daridex had engaged the Jerichan Fathership to their mutual destruction. Moments before the battlecruiser followed the Jerichan's explosion, the remaining crew transported to the Scout. They headed for the closest Alliance installation. The equipment was secured before they made landfall so they would have something with which to bargain. After landing, they were attacked by Jerichans but managed to escape. They were on the run for almost a week until they witnessed the crash-land of the BABYLON. Several personnel voice concerns about the Romulans being trained on the Alliance's latest weapon. Jarrad listens but states it is Vine's decision since he is doing the training. Since Vine feels more comfortable about everyone using a common weapon, Jarrad says the decision has been made. Jarrad admits to Samson he is not entirely comfortable with the situation when he agrees with the being's reservations. Since Samson had been 'interrogated' by Romulans while serving aboard the Enterprise; he has always had a low opinion of them. This was made worse when Larr, whom he had met while on a special assignment, had invited him to transfer to the TANELORN. This transfer played a major part of the foundation of the Angry Angels, since Samson's abduction had taken place so the Romulans could determine the sector from which Samson's father had been contacting him. The quarter-breed's father is the head of the famous 'Wrath Of God' Corps that Starfleet uses on missions of critical significance. The General had been very upset about the Romulans trying to determine his plans by assaulting his son and wanted to spend more time near his son's new allies. The General was impressed by the Royal Rangers as well as the Mystic Warriors and wanted to share ideas and styles between the species and disciplines. Samson had started as an Intelligence Specialist but transferred to the Security department after the onset of hostilities with the Jerichans. Faced with a common enemy, an uneasy truce with the Romulans was established and both powers named it a _manifest destiny _to keep the border open. With the reluctant exchange of information, Samson found his old position to be an anachronism and joined O'Camp at Nortania to help with the integration of Romulans into local society. He found the Nortanians to have a kindred spirit and asked to stay. He had been requested to transfer temporarily to a largely ceremonial position but was not even needed when he got there. Since he had wanted to stay, O'Camp and Hersh had worked together to establish some new policies. With Vine as senior most Striker present, he had been made Chief of Security but his duties were to deal directly with the Outpost's population. This technically left a position open in the Operations Center for a Security Chief, which served at the Tactical position and dealt with issues more related to official Star Corps business where the Outpost staff was concerned. This position also left him as part of the Command staff of the ARCHANGEL and this got him an early commission to the flag rank of Captain since O'Camp insisted all his department heads hold that distinction. When O'Camp was offered the Spacedock by the strong recommendation of Jarrad, O'Camp insisted he bring his team with him as a condition. Samson was glad to leave since his Nortanian girlfriend had been killed. Although a member of the Romulan ambassador's staff had recognized him and apologized, Samson is not very trusting to this day. After going through the Officer's Program, he had gained a certain _'understanding' _of the way things were done. This is why, even though he is not pleased with the training being done by Vine, he tells others who voice similar reservations he understands but they are addressing things not their concern. One persistent computer technician is silenced when told further comment will get him transferred to Security so he can address the issue within the proper command. Even Jarrad says he does not think it is appropriate for him to contradict a fellow officer when dealing with a situation where he has limited experience and he can see no flaw in Vine's explanation. Despite the fact the reason was given in a manner which had taken the Commandant aback. Pr'gn cannot care less since he does not see what all the drama is about. Pr'gn is somewhat familiar with the design of the weapon from back when he had seen the basic design concept as a contract issued to another developer since it is based on a weapon in Hersh's antique collection. The original weapon was used by a group of _Special Forces _around the early 21st century. It is made out of a special lightweight alloy and is very durable and heat resistant. It holds two power packs and a set of micro-generators to recharge the cells on the fly. It only fires one pulsed discharge per trigger pull. It is supposed to be fired a maximum of once per second although each person can modify the settings to personal preferences. T-V asks Pr'gn if he wants to place a bet on how long the 'preferred settings' will last since the Strikers are all betting it will not last past the first moments of the initial assault. Vine sets up the defensive positions and the scanner system is again setup. T-V wants to be on the front line since she is a Striker and has a reputation for being good under fire but she is needed to help with the task with the Relay.

* * *

Tannor gets to the station and connects the systems. He just barely makes it since most of the critical onboard operations are compromised during the trip. He manages to sneak through all 3 sections to the other side of the station and up 7 decks to get to an auxiliary control station. It winds up being relatively easy since there is almost no security present. He was given specific orders and an old but active command code from Jarrad. His first task is to get transportation out of there so he disables all but one of the shuttles and locks that one. He then sets up a sensor feed and goes about setting up the database transfer. He also bypasses several critical command pathways and crosslinks random major and minor systems. As he works the Drakmärian pilot monitors the progress of the various displays. Despite being raised in the noble household of a Tribal Overlord in which all non-blood members of the household or visitors were to carry themselves with an air of awe, he is actually impressed by how efficient the Jerichans work has been to this point. To make their work easier to complete, they have left the existing _operating system _in place. By writing programs using the existing system language, it aids in the functionality of the work they are doing but it _also _makes it easier for the work Tannor is doing. One file catches his eye from the communications transmission logs. It is an anomalous file introduced into the standard hailing protocol and is part of the frequency cycle. The implications are chilling for him and he knows what to expect even before he views the remainder of the file documenting the effects of the code's application through the relaying it via the station's network antennae. The Relay normally tracks the movements of all vessels within the Alliance sphere of influence especially in relation to the station. This acts as an aid to navigation as well as long-range communication and sensory tracking. In normal circumstances for purposes of communication, a signal is simply amplified and redirected as an unaltered file. This code does not alter the file's contents; instead, it modifies the tracking information acting as part of the header details. The information is not a physical encoding being 'read' as part of the header file; rather it is cycled into the subspace encapsulation. The encapsulation contains information such as destination, file type, size, encryption type, whether a real time communiqué or prepared data and other such hard information including transmission source data. All this information is typically innocuous in nature once it arrives at the destination meaning it is automatically reviewed by the computer. Since all sensors operate using a ship's subspace field, even a ship observing communications silence but employing passive sensors can be effected. Because detected phenomena are processed by any number of filters automatically. According to the information he is seeing, Tannor determines the station has successfully deployed the weapon on 6 ships and 52 Shadowcats. The effect is destructive on anything organically based but is progressively less effective as the amount of organic material decreases. The Shadowcats are completely incapacitated since their greatest asset is their organically based memory cores. This means they have to be completely rebuilt and their memory of what they have scanned or mapped is lost. Unfortunately, all of the starships are destroyed within moments. Tannor keeps finding files to transfer. He has them copy themselves to the Sled where they are being downloaded. This completely bypasses the firewall system. Or so he thinks. Somewhere along the line, the level of activity catches the attention of someone aboard the station. Tannor is so intent in his task he almost does not notice when the patrol approaches. He does his best to ensure the Jerichans never know what hit them and nearly succeeds. To the Drakmärian's annoyance, one of them gets lucky.

* * *

Right after the download starts the surprise is activated. T-V dispassionately narrates the progress of what is revealed by the data feed. If not for the fact her voice has the natural growl of her species, Jarrad thinks she is snarling in anger. Every word mirrors the conclusions of her comrade miles above. Jarrad's stomach knots even more as the realization of what they are facing becomes rapidly clearer. Even if the fleet should become victorious over the garrison, there is no way they can ever be able to approach the planet. Jarrad practically prays O'Camp gets aggressive and tries an end run to disrupt the Jerichan fortitude. Since the Jerichans are not known for their patience unless it is part of some grand scheme, a surprise attack from that angle will likely cause the garrison to fall back to Delphite III. If that is the case then they are trapped. This makes the knot in his stomach worse and gives him the gut feeling this is a _lose-lose _situation. He smiles tightly with the smug satisfaction he is doing his people and those he is leading justice by going down fighting. Like another commander had quoted ages ago _'no retreat, no surrender' _was the credo for this moment. His Star Corps career had begun here and it appeared it was going to end here. He is startled out of his musing by the activation of the surprise. There had been the usual series of jokes about T-V never meeting a warp drive she did not experiment with to explosive results. This time was no exception. There is a series of flashes and then a fireworks shower of antimatter particles flying through the air. It lasts but a few seconds but it almost seems to happen in slow motion. For some reason it causes him to think of several occasions in which O'Camp had directed his attention toward the Delphite sector. He had passed the input off on most occasions since the sector was not considered by the Intelligence department to be strategically critical. One of the handfuls of times he relented had helped save the Spacedock from a Romulan invasion during the _Patriot's Crisis _incident. He now wishes he had listened closer to his friend's input. He is the first to admit some of his friend's personal beliefs are off-putting and this sometimes turns him against O'Camp's recommendations when they are in the minority. His mind and focus had been changed when he encountered the stranger on Etum who seemed to know too much about Jarrad's own life. Even though they had supposedly never met, for some reason the man had seemed very familiar. He suspects the man was from a parallel or alternate reality. This makes the most sense although it does not completely fit. He has his suspicions about what had happened but keeps those to himself. In case his suspicion about the identity of the young stranger is true, he does not want his position of influence in the young man's life to create far-reaching problems even God Himself may not even be able to figure out. The absurdity causes him to laugh in spite of himself right as the Jerichans charge from the countryside. Vine watches as Jarrad swings his weapon into firing position but holds his fire. All up and down the line, everybody is steeling themselves for the impending combat. Vine casually makes some final adjustments to his equipment and gets an odd look from Jarrad. The firefight soon becomes so intense Vine can tell who is accustomed to the equipment and who is not by those who switch off their TAPPER display. Vine smiles grimly and begins targeting any Jerichan whose image indicates they are being shot at by someone who is 'painting' them by an unsecured system. This is usually determined by locking onto a Jerichan who is glowing after being marked by the system and seeing if another mark has been confirmed. Each marking has a different color and it is easy for Vine to intercede. After several complaints, Vine tells them to put their HUDs back in place and turn them on. Mixed in with the groans of complaint are comments of amazement at how he figured it out. Even one or two comments declare _'I told you he was that good' _and _'it really is true that nothing gets past the Wall'_ as they continue to fire. Despite being outnumbered, the advantage is with the Alliance for the time being. Only a handful of the defenders fall as the oncoming attackers are cut down. They manage to charge more than halfway across the several dozen meters before they are slowed enough to take up trenching positions. Several waves charge before the opposing positions are completed. This takes well over an hour. For the next several hours, there is an equal exchange of weapons fire from both emplacements. Jarrad's already frayed nerves are now working overtime with several too many near misses. Pr'gn on the other hand is having a blast. He is eager for payback and the accounts are more than paid off. Each shot that comes anywhere close only serves to encourage him that the Jerichans have done their worst to him already. Jarrad suggests sending a team to make a strike into the ranks on the sides and create confusion. Vine agrees this is a good idea but the positioning of the two forces makes that difficult at best. Jarrad comments there has been little loss on their side but the battlefield is littered with bodies wearing Jerichan Trooper uniforms. Vine calculates there is about a dozen dead and wounded on their side while he can see the other side has about 50 the Jerichans are unable to retrieve lying in the rocky field. Estimating about an equal amount of wounded being able to assist in their removal from the battle, there is about an equal percentage of casualties on either side. It would only be a credible idea if there were more than 1/4 of the personnel being trained Strike Force troops. Just then, the Jerichans perform another rush. This one is all across the line and is more massive than all the others are. The front line is obliterated almost instantly. The section behind that tries to hold the line. They are quickly forced to melt back in a strategic withdrawal. The suddenness and ferocity shocks Jarrad and he almost does not respond when a Jerichan comes running toward him. Everything moves in slow motion as Jarrad reflexively lifts his weapon and fires. Vine turns and sees the Jerichan right as Jarrad aims. The Striker whips his weapon into position and fires simultaneously. Jarrad turns and sees Samson and Pr'gn have done likewise. Samson suggests the Engineer and the Admiral fall back to the LINC. They do so by walking backward and firing as they go. While making their way into the LINC to take up positions in the secured foyer, they watch as Samson and Vine wade into the thick of things. Vine stays on the move, telling everyone to protect the LINC at all costs. At one point, the battle is so intense he picks up a second Stout and employs both. Others are employing this method as well as using the Stouts as melee weapons. Even if they cannot be fired, the weapons are sturdy enough they can be used as clubs and there is a foldout blade attached to the barrel. When Vine realizes he has waded farther out into the battle than intended, he quickly makes his way back to the LINC. Right as he gets there, he sees a crouched Jarrad going hand-to-hand with a Jerichan and definitely on the losing side. Practically in a wrestling match. Jarrad is still fighting valiantly but the Jerichan has the upper hand. Despite his distance from them and their proximity to each other, Vine fires on the run. The shot hits the Jerichan just below and behind the near armpit. This knocks the Jerichan back and Vine closes the distance fast enough to smash his weapon into the Jerichan right as he begins to recover. The Jerichan kicks out as he falls but Vine turns and takes the hit on the high hip. With a quick maneuver, Vine reacts and administers a decisive move. Vine calls for a medic as Jarrad struggles to pick himself off the floor. When Jarrad gets himself into a sitting position, he finds his wound being attended by a Romulan. The medic's head is almost completely bandaged on one side and their uniform's arm has been removed as there is a blue soaked bandage wrapped around the upper third of their arm. Jarrad has minor cuts that are steadily bleeding on his hands, face, and torso. His tunic front has been nearly slashed open since the ablation armor on the front is not designed to protect against bladed weapons. Pr'gn has taken a nasty hit to his bad leg and is sweating from the pain. He is pale but angry enough to have some fight still left in him. When Jarrad looks at him quizzically, Pr'gn quips painfully that he _'sees Jarrad has gotten his shirt off again'_ and comments he does not think Romulans were necessarily the _'Admiral Beefcake'_ style. Jarrad is about to respond when there is a shout from just out side for everyone to get outside now as the Jerichans are coming again. A group of a couple dozen is making a charge down the middle to penetrate the LINC. The attack is nearly repelled when a lucky shot gets too close to Pr'gn's position. The energy hits the rock face just right and it sends debris everywhere, knocking the engineer backwards and rendering him unconscious. In total shock, Jarrad turns to reach out to his friend and a second lucky shot hits Jarrad's forearm and continues on to strike his lower right ribcage squarely. This throws him into the air and slams him into the ground with his arm contorted into a highly unnatural position. Jarrad tries to get up but finds he cannot get any air into his lungs. His vision beginning to tunnel, he looks over to Pr'gn and realizes he is not moving. He hoarsely whispers to Pr'gn that _'I'm right behind you my friend save me a seat'_. The impact of the ground rushing up to meet him gives him another moment of clarity and he uses that to roll to a face up position so he can entreat the Great Spirit one final time. Whether from the agony, the emotion, or the dirt in his eyes and nose, Jarrad feels a tear roll down his face as he manages to gasp **_'oh Great Spirit please…'_**. He suddenly sees a Jerichan appear over him about to smash his weapon down. There is suddenly an emptiness and everything goes black. Samson watches as Pr'gn goes down and calls out a warning to Jarrad who is obviously distracted. Samson scrambles from his position, entrenched partway up the slope next to the station. It takes only seconds as he clears the distance in only a couple catlike bounds. Unfortunately when he gets to a position where he has a more direct shot, Jarrad is now blocking his target. He watches as Jarrad is hit and he is forced to dive for cover as the Jerichan continues to fire and Samson is unable to take a shot. He rolls out of the dive through a pile of smashed rocks cutting a series of deep gouges into his back as he rolls up into a firing stance crouch. Vine hears Samson's call for help and charges to the rescue. One too many hits to his helmet has knocked out his display and so he actually runs through a firefight to get to the location he remembers Samson taking up. As he rounds the final corner, he watches as Jarrad hits the ground and rolls to face up. Samson tries to take up position but is outmaneuvered. He continues to rush forward to take a position of his own when a Jerichan appears from behind some rocks and advances on Jarrad's form. Jarrad tries to say something as the Jerichan begins to swing his weapon in an effort to finish the deadly work he had started. Vine does not even think as he fires his weapon. It is not his nature to fire more than twice at a target but with his TAPPER damaged and the fact he wants to be sure, he fires multiple times. The Jerichan does an awkward midair somersault as Vine continues to charge forward. Vine arrives at Jarrad's side in time to see the man's eyes glaze over and his body goes limp. Vine calls for everyone to form on him and _hold the line_. Samson drags himself into position. Several defenders express disbelief and concern upon witnessing Jarrad's and Pr'gn's still forms. With the Jerichans already withdrawing, the situation is beyond chaotic. A couple of the defenders who are not trained Strikers attempt to perform a _'bounding' _maneuver by advancing in a staggered formation. They get no further than a few meters before Vine tells them to _fall back_. He then has all Strikers maintain fire while ordering all others to withdraw into the LINC building. Vine orders all bodies collected and brought in as well and leaves a team to protect the entrance. When Vine goes inside to see how things are going a bloodied T-V hands him a helmet with a fixed display. When Vine suggests she get treated because of the blood, she replies _'not much is mine' _and she has only been hit about a dozen times but nothing critical enough with her unique physiology especially her thicker skin. When Jarrad wakens, he is told he has a collapsed lung and the last 3 fingers of his right hand have been bonded to the radius bone of his forearm. The Ulna bone has been shattered but has been set externally and the same has been done for 7 of his ribs. He can make a fist and fire a weapon, but if he punches anyone, it will likely mean his forearm will have to be amputated and a cloned implant attached. After being informed Pr'gn is out of the fight, Jarrad goes to check on the progress with the Relay. The bad news is the Jerichans have finally gotten past the lockout on the Relay, which was the first thing the original team had accomplished. With the lockout gone, the data feed is now a complete pathway. They can now remotely access the relay's sensors. Jarrad's hope goes up when he sees an indeterminate number of craft approaching through the Shadowlands. He then groans in exasperation when the increase in data feed results in a proportionate increase of resolution. Several of the craft are unmistakably Jerichan Cruisers. Jarrad admits the inevitable has happened and mutters _what next _under his breath. The tech answers by saying there is _another data track being initiated_ they are now able to monitor. It is the virus being prepared for transmission. Doing some engineering sleight-of-hand, he is able to bypass the main sensor feed and use a secondary to piggyback the targeting system. Jarrad has mixed feelings about the image. It is the TANELORN, alone and displaying some unusual energy emanations. It is traveling at 1/2 impulse and the infrared signature is off the scale likely indicating out of control fires. The spectral image indicates multiple radiation leaks on a scale beyond unsafe for living tissue. Jarrad sighs in resignation believing it is truly over. Unable to interact with the information despite multiple attempts, Jarrad nearly gags as he watches as the virus is transmitted. The TANELORN's image lurches violently and nearly flips over as it slams into the local Shadowland event horizon followed by a massive explosion. The technician suddenly acts startled as the image starts to waver and disappears. The feed is gone. The attempt to reinitialize the feed by remotely seeking any transmissions fails. They appear to be jammed by a massive subspace pulse. It appears a transporter beam was attempted in the vicinity, perhaps with Tannor trying to beam down and then a simultaneous pulse strong enough to scramble or even wipe the memory core for the LINC's computer. The _data banks _are still intact so something is strange about the theory. Jarrad is about to say something but the thought disappears as there is a shout the Jerichans are coming again. Jarrad takes up position next to Samson who tells him _this looks like the main attack judging from the way they are advancing all at once rather than in sections using a staggered formation method_ similar to the standard 'bounding' maneuver. Jarrad gets a sick look on his face and confesses _now the flagship is gone it is likely his turn to go _as well. He does not believe he will survive another attack. Samson replies he is trying to look at it like _this is the last ditch effort for the Jerichans and they are panicking in a futile effort to win_. Jarrad laughs and winces in pain commenting _Pr'gn was right about Samson spending too much time around Nortanians to where he had finally developed a sense of humor_. Samson dryly growls a one-liner asking if Jarrad had ever heard the one about the Cardassian and the Ferengi. He stops in mid-thought as Jarrad stares at him in amazement then follows Samson's gaze to look at the sky. There is a Scout craft in the process of launching fighters only a few kilometers above. A few shots are fired at the fighters but Vine says they have neither the range nor the firepower. To everyone's surprise, there are a series of explosions and the Scout turns into a massive fireball, which also consumes most of the fighters. Only half a dozen fighters remain which make one strafing run before they too explode. Several atmospheric distortions decloak into Paladins and begin peppering the ground where the Jerichans are charging across. A familiar voice comes over the comlink and recommends everyone go back into the LINC. For the next 10 minutes, the Nortanian craft continue their bombardment. The instant this ends, Hersh appears and tells everyone to get moving as the Grand Paladin GENTAR Falcon is _ground bound _and this is not a safe position to be. The warship's weapons are down and they lost two of their support Paladins on the short trip back here. Vine offers to provide security for the evacuation, but Hersh declines. The Commodore says there are about as many Nortanians on the ground now as there were Jerichans confronting the LINC when the Nortanians first scanned 15 minutes ago. Sure enough, Vine counts about at least a battalion on detail. About 1/3 of them, or at least as many as were defending the LINC at the start of the siege, are in position to confront any Jerichans. It takes a total of about 15 minutes to get all the wounded aboard, disassemble all the sensitive equipment used during the recent conflict and secure the data. When Jarrad makes a comment about the loss of a second Alliance class warship, Hersh agrees and seems confused that Jarrad knows.

* * *

(Right as Tannor is initiating the download) When the TANELORN leaves the Shadowlands, O'Camp orders a surprise conceived by McCollin prepared. Ses says his people have prepared their part and Verdal has everything hooked up and his team is ready to go. Thanks to McCollin's technical handiwork, there is no indication anyone has detected any difference in the flagship's signature to distract from the task. When the virus is transmitted, it is immediately effective. What is thought to be the TANELORN turns out to be the ARCHANGEL using an experimental imaging system with enough spectral distortion added to make it look like battle damage and to distract from the illusion. The ARCHANGEL is running with all computers down except for one aboard a Wayfarer. When the Wayfarer's systems began to act erratic despite no systems being active except for those required to support the setup, it is ejected by a reverse tractor from the shuttlebay. The Wayfarer becomes active of its own accord and almost immediately explodes. Although multiple firewalls have been established to prevent any contact between the Wayfarer and the Tactical Scout, they are still running hard-coded drivers to operate the impulse engines. As a precaution, the warp and impulse drives are dumped as are the computer cores. The impulse engine is ejected and 2 of the 3 warp engines are as well. The starboard engine has been damaged and the aft linkage sticks upon release. The linkage causes an injector to misfire and a thruster activates just long enough to divert the ARCHANGEL's trajectory since it is still moving from the impetus of the now gone impulse engine. The still attached warp engine is at about a 90º angle when everything ejected and removed explodes. The TANELORN is still moving while cloaked and transports the handful of personnel from the ARCHANGEL aboard. Once the virus transmission has ended, it is confirmed the Relay **_IS_** the weapon and O'Camp orders the Atomizers fired. After conferring with Hersh, he orders the flagship turned around and collects the mostly intact hull of the ARCHANGEL. They then wait for the fleet to arrive. When the two forces emerge from the Shadowlands, the Jerichans seem thrown into disarray by the destruction of the Station and they scatter. Because of his injuries, Jarrad leaves O'Camp in charge of the TANELORN for the trip home. He thanks O'Camp for not obeying his orders and for keeping the flagship intact.

* * *

After returning to the Spacedock and taking some time to get everything situated, a meeting is called. Hersh, who has been taking cooking lessons, makes a meal for everyone. He tells everyone he has found a new hobby in the Nortanian entertainment ministry from his work with security technology in the field of holography development. A prominent firm having a contract with the Federation is interested in his work and he is seriously considering accepting when his current tour is over. McCollin reports that just over 1/3 of the craft dispatched are destroyed or damaged to the point of being scrapped. This amounts to 18 ships. Vine announces of the defenders at Delphite III there are 53 survivors, which is slightly less than half the force after the BABYLON-IVs crew had joined. The ship's crew amounts to over 2/3 of the casualties. O'Camp announces the Jerichans are on the run. The Jerichans abandoning Serendipity Station pleases Pr'gn to no end. From O'Camp's Intelligence Report it seems the Jerichans were massing an invasion from the Delphite sector and were less then a week from being ready to launch a final all-out offensive thrust. This was intended to break the Alliance's back for the last time. Their using Alliance technology against itself worked too well and turned out to be the one flaw in their plan. The numerous reports he is getting indicate the Jerichans present more of a risk than a threat and they are more dangerous now they are no longer organized. Several others who have seen the reports agree with the assessment. Jarrad is puzzled and asks what he means. O'Camp says he is referring to Jesus last words on the cross perfectly fit this situation. Jarrad sighs and laughs which sends a twinge of pain through his bandaged arm and side. The Grand Admiral says _'wait I remember this one it was worth double points in my trivia game I played last night'_ but shrugs when O'Camp gives him an odd, bemused look. Jarrad indicates he may not agree with all of his friend's beliefs but he has earned the right to be heard in this official capacity. O'Camp gets a chorus of subdued agreement from all assembled when he says, _"It is finished_!"

N O T E S / S T O R Y--E N D

* * *

This narrative composes the notes for the final story I'm writing. This story takes place after '_Dual-ing Champions_' and before '_Drolrevo_'. All these stories mentioned are abbreviated versions of an original concept but I felt the need to bring some ideas together for continuity's sake and to close out the genre. It is not the last story in the series. ''Grand' Finale' is the final story although it was written before this one. Please reread this final closing section after reading ''Grand' Finale' for sake of continuity. I have placed it here simply because it is the official ending and this is the true last story as written and I feel that make it an appropriate place (it might also create confusion about the identity of the main character)…or sometimes you have to take a few steps back to see where you are going to end up (I guess! ;-) )

Some other notes which I never expanded upon:

I got the idea for this story after watching the Deep Space 9 episode 'The Siege of AR-558' and loved it so much I had to do my own version.

I wanted to do a story with O'Camp in command of the TANELORN.

I also wanted to have one more story where O'Camp was the featured hero and he does something to save the day.

I put the prelude in after watching 'Tears Of The Sun' and wanted to do an 'Angry Angels' story.

Originally, Pr'gn had been with them, which had led to his capture, but since he was being written as a civilian I had to change that. It was turned into either Hersh or McCollin as the officer, but since I wasn't sure at the time which one was going to be staying in the alternate universe, I changed it since I wanted to write that the officer was seriously injured during the mission (just returning from medical leave for the events in Drolrevo which created writing problems for either) but I couldn't figure a reason why he was there in the first place. I later decided to change it to where Brian goes on one final mission for Larrgn-Z and he has an incident where his Romulan implants reassert themselves and this is intended as a prelude to him later becoming an ambassador to the Romulan underground.

The part with the CYGNUS was my way of honoring Zach's previously mentioned request to destroy the CYGNUS after he died. He specifically asked to me to work it into a story to ensure that his dream died with him…in his own words he thought anything else would be thought of as "hokey"

Jarrad's log is just filling in the blanks of other ideas I had which were to be incorporated into other stories.

The brief narrative about the 3 unique iterations of Rogue fighters is a condensed part of the story/action featuring the craft.

I also never could decide who was the protagonist in Grand Finale (it could be one of 4 people Pr'gn, Jarrad, O'Camp or… but there is an alternate for the fourth depending on the outcome of Drolrevo Hersh/McCollin).

I left Samson behind in Drolrevo because I'd once tried to reform the Alliance writer's club but found it too much to handle.

I purposely left the identity ambiguous of the other officer who stays behind simply because of both the creator for McCollin and Hersh were in and out of my life at the time and I couldn't decide which character I wanted to focus on in the final story.

In the Siege Of Delphite 3, I actually had McCollin on both the TANELORN and the ALLIANCE toward the end of the story (while aboard the TANELORN, he somehow built the second Atomizer for the ALLIANCE).

The Hersh character similarly jumps around quite a bit.

I did not do nearly as much as I wanted to with secondary characters since I wanted to develop the primary ones as much as possible.

Notes reflected in the _epilogue_ below

The elusive traitor is none other than Larrgn-Z who has actually been acting under orders. O'Camp has actually been working for him the whole time under orders from the Federation. It is an effort to bring restoration to the relationship with the Romulans but on Drakmärian terms.

Larr is assassinated by the P'Linza and his Queen, who was once Jarrad's #1 aboard the TANELORN takes over (this is narrated as history in Grand Finale).

I haven't decided whether the new base of operations becomes Nortania or Etum (I have arbitrarily named it as Nortania in the closing below).

_**EPILOGUE**_

Administrative Detail Log, Brian O'Camp: I have been requested to file a final personal log to close out my duty logs. First some history. During my convalescence following the events surrounding my extraction from Romulus, I was introduced to a Drakmärian by my old handler. It turned out to be Da'kr-Z. My handler informed me of some things I already knew peripherally. The Romulans were having problems with a little known race called the Berger. This race had an alliance with a race called the Jerichans. The Berger acted as governing body for the militaristic Jerichans and had indoctrinated them into the policies and practices of the Nazi party of ancient Germany. They sought me out for multiple reasons. First my German heritage (I reminded them my new identity was legally Irish…) followed by my indoctrination and cover in the Romulan intelligence community. The Romulans were very concerned that the Jerichans were gaining greater progress into areas of concern consistently. The Alliance Da'kr-Z represented had a cultural disdain for the Romulans but he had friends within the Romulan underground who believed that needed to change for both powers to become victorious against these unwelcome incursions. By treaty, the Federation could not become directly involved. I was uncertain what to make of all this. My fiancee had just been murdered. I had taken this very dangerous assignment in the hopes I could do something besides process conspiracy theories and perhaps make a serious discovery or die trying. My contact was an ambassadorial aide whose cover just happened to be as the sister of T'Kay, the chief of Science for the starship GALLOWAY just as my cover was as the cousin of Miles O'Brien of DS 9. T'Kemp was deeply religious and this cornerstone of her life began to involve mine as well when we began to work together more often. Once we suspected that the Tal Shiar had infiltrated the underground, she discovered that a member of our team was a double agent. We set up a trap and made it appear as though the Federation was about to make an assassination attempt on Ambassador Spock. I got assigned as political officer for a prototype advanced d'Deridex named the KIITRAS and everything went fine until the commander went crazy and decided to make a preemptive attack against earth. When we encountered the cargo ship which I recognized as the one carrying the security detail assigned to recover the operatives, I suggested the cargo be beamed aboard. This led to the KIITRAS being captured. The commander killed what was left of the crew he had not already killed for 'insubordination' and ordered me to destroy the KIITRAS right before he killed himself. I handed the vessel over and was returned to duty undercover. As I was leaving, one of the officers shouted something at me and I was informed that one of the junior members of the security team had gotten startled by the unexpected arrival of the marine boarding party and opened fire, which led to his arrest. I later learned it was none other than Dartanion Jarrad and he'd threatened to kill me. When I returned to my posting, I found we'd discovered the identity of the double agent and our mission was being scrubbed. We found that only a handful of Federation operatives from the 'Spock' assignment had survived after the Romulan military had arrived. The Klingons had arrived at the last possible moment. We were preparing for extraction when we lost contact with T'Kemp. With only hours before departure we found her. The double agent had escaped Romulan custody, kidnapped her, and tried to torture the identity of who had betrayed him out of her. He had actually contacted me to let me know since he thought I was aboard the KIITRAS and refused to believe it was destroyed as had been claimed. By the time I got to T'Kemp, she was dead. We arranged transport to a neutral border world and got the Klingon ship with the Federation operatives to retrieve us. I don't know how the Romulans found us but the Klingons almost didn't make it in time. During my recovery at Starfleet HQ, I met T'Kemp's uncle. He was a marine General named Obedi Samson and happened to share her faith in Christ. He led me to understand that T'Kemp only wanted to end all this conflict and the opportunity the Alliance presented was a special road to follow. In fact, the General said his own son as well as several members of his own command were recommended for positions. I accepted once I was told I'd be working under the direction of the Royal authority and Da'kr-Z's son Larrgn-Z would be my handler since he was Chief of Intelligence for the vessel we were assigned to. I absolutely HATED wearing the uniform but my duties were pretty simple since I was Morale and Recreation Officer at the rank of Lieutenant. Unfortunately the MaRO was part of the Operations department and I wound up getting promoted for being too good at my job. The first task I had with Larrgn-Z was as strange as it was easy. We had to instigate a state of conflict between the Alliance and the Jerichans. Larr figured if his people shared a common enemy with the Romulans, the respective undergrounds would be more ready to accept the other's differences. The plan was very effective. To my chagrin, it was also effective at getting me promoted since maintaining an operational cover for covert activity is increasingly difficult the more prominent you become. The last straw was when Pr'gn and I were both promoted to the Spacedock command after I'd made some comments about being interested in a facility command with my next promotion. My intent HAD been to take a posting on Nortania but Zach got that one instead when Toné went into limited requirement to serve his annual obligation to the Militia. Pr'gn had wanted to remain stationed aboard the flagship and was quite upset when that did not happen. Since Zach was getting progressively sicker, it helped us set up a plan to get reassigned to the flagship and Dak'r-Z was more than happy to help since he was not happy the Council had changed our assignments. In return, I was to begin an investigation into some strange 'incidents' happening throughout Alliance territory. Larr had been acting under orders to cause deliberate acts of sabotage while I was doing mostly disinformation. He got so good that my investigation was intended as a misdirect. An unintended consequence was when the Berger suddenly went against their Xenophobic character and my cover was nearly blown when the flagship was destroyed and Zach killed. I soon found out that I did not have to worry in the first place since Zach did not actually die. He had been abducted by a group of time travelers who had taken a special interest in our conflict. They cured his disease and trained him to be an observer for them. For them the training lasted about a decade but he was returned to a point several years before his 'death' as Mr Atwood and placed in charge of the timeship CYGNUS. I wound up with the assignment which led to my semipermanent home on Nortania. Even though I wound up transferred back to the Spacedock later, I always considered Nortania my home. Even though I'll be leaving soon. After my flagship ARCHANGEL was completed, the Strike Force wanted to have a fast attack and deployment craft and tried to use the Tactical Scout. It met with limited success so Pr'gn and I came up with a similar design using some technology his civilian firm had developed. By this time, Dak'r-Z was getting old and he was developing a rare condition which unfortunately was hereditary for his family line. He wanted to go out fighting. He had me develop the master codes and mission intelligence for the attack on his life that Larr was to leak to the Jerichans through their allies, the P'Linza rebels. The plan worked perfectly and I was able to test the new starship on the escaping assassins. Not long after, I was nearly killed while on a mission to blockade the wormhole. While I was recovering on Etum, Jarrad paid a visit. During this visit, he disappeared for nearly a day and was unable to be found despite a massive search. During that time, he became privy to an unusual source of intelligence which led to a lot of changes. It turned out his son had come back in time to give him critical information on events during the war. I understood that since the crew of the CYGNUS helped him, they were ordered to precipitate the events at Delphite III as a way to end their mission. With the Berger gone, the Jerichans became more of a problem and I was given command of the OVERLORD. We had the second best record in the fleet next to the SHROUD. Our patrol route ran from the Spacedock to Nortania and I had a home built on some land given me by the ruling family. Only weeks after the OVERLORD was launched, Toné's adoptive brother was killed in action while Toné was on vacation visiting Mike who was overseeing the building of the PRIMUS-II at the Lunär Materiel Fabrication Facilities. The OVERLORD and her support craft arrived there only moments too late to save the Prince's life although we did manage to prevent the destruction of the Royal Paladin he'd been the Executive Command Assistant for ("Eca" being the military term for 'first officer' just has a different ring to me from when I was '#1' for the TANELORN). During the family's month-long grieving period, the King gave me a fair-sized piece of the family's land. The King's brother, who was only a few years older than Toné, ran the government during this time and did such a good job that the people chose him to stay when the King died from the grief just days before the month was over. The uncle had only committed to the minimum service to the Militia and so was more 'civilian' or easygoing in his leadership style than his late "tough but fair" older brother. During this transition period, I put the OVERLORD into the Aslan shipyards for an overhaul/refit. Larrgn-Z, as the new Primus, had come up with a dramatic plan. Since our war with the Berger had concluded, the Jerichans had found a new ally with the P'Linza. The rebels had not only infiltrated the Council of Elders but there was a suspicion they knew about the Royal affiliation with the Romulan underground. Larr said he needed someone who could act without fear of reprisal from the Council. We put a plan into place but had no way to implement it until our return trip from the parallel universe provided the perfect cover. The OVERLORD had to disappear (which labelled me as Missing) and we began working directly with the Romulan Underground. Unfortunately this meant I had to sacrifice the ARCHANGEL to make the deception complete. For the duration of our covert activities, I transferred SHAUNA to the BABYLON-5. Right before we left, the TANELORN and OVERLORD went on a joint mission to memorialize those lost on the last major conflict of the war. We left a team to rebuild the infrastructure on Delphte III. For one mission, the two warships shared orbit. They and their commanders and crews were a testament. The ships were as unique as the commanders. The TANELORN was built at Drakmär IV and was the first of its class, designed and constructed by a joint Federation/Alliance team. It had seen a major overhaul and this had incorporated a design modification for certain features. The OVERLORD had been built at the Aslan shipyards. It had a certain level of design flexibility built-in and was 5 decks shorter and 2 sections longer. The hull was slightly wider due to a specialized hull configuration (along with the inert outer hull, there was a non-reactive energized inner hull, making for a quad hull design) but the warp engines were designed to be tighter to the hull for a more optimized warp configuration. These covert activities finally put the Jerichans on the run and the Primus decided he was finally going to bring us back in. He had one task which he was going to perform first which was to dissolve the Council. He was first establishing a rotating Quorum of Overlords to represent the interests of the various tribes instead. The transfer went smoothly as the Council had fallen into disfavor over the years and there were a number of Tribal Overlords who were well-loved by their tribes. Unfotunately, the P'Linza were displeased that their puppets on the Council were displaced and this started a brief planetary riot and the Primus was on the verge of declaring it a civil war in the hours before his assassination. I ordered the OVERLORD out of concealment just in time to witness the destruction of the Spacedock with the crippled TANELORN trapped inside. My main regret about taking command of the OVERLORD was that I had seen the loss of two close friends, Hersh and McCollin. One had remained in the alternate universe to lend a commanding presence to a rebuilding of the Alliance and the other had perished while leading the defense of the Spacedock against the P'Linza treachery to protect those evacuating the facility. When the facility was boarded, Jarrad was captured briefly and informed of Larr's true purpose…all carefully embellished and distorted by typical P'Linza propaganda, of course. This was made worse when I turned up alive. Jarrad felt betrayed by me and made it clear he had a hard time forgiving me. When Nortania seceded from the Alliance during the Drakmärian 'unrest' following the attempted coup by the P'Linza, Jarrad took it personally. Due to circumstances dictating, I chose to accept a General posting within the Nortanian Armada. I served for several years until I got to the point where I no longer cared for command. My Royal Paladin, the BUREWK Eagle (that bird is the symbol of the territory Toné's uncle was the Ministerium President of before he ascended the throne, so it was quite a humbling honor to placed in command) had me acting as liaison to Romulus. The underground, now in name only, had become such a populist groundswell of a movement that the Imperial Senate was forced by political expediency to acknowledge them as a legitimate part of Romulan society and granted them a voice and position within the government. While still acting as liaison I was given the title Ambassador by the Romulans and Nortania soon did likewise. It had become time for me to retire from Active Standing anyway. The position was part of the Militia Reserves and I was actually surprised when the new commander actually got dispensation for the BUREWK Eagle to be seconded to the Reserves for the duration (I never did understand how that worked, since the Armada and the Militia were now seperate branches of service yet the Reserves were still under Militia Directorate authority). That position was where I served for these past years until my recent retirement. I have just buried Jarrad who lived a long, full life. He also retired as an ambassador and founded his own consulting firm. Being the last two remaining members of the original TANELORN, we stayed in contact but grew apart. Pr'gn actually had come aboard during one of the first crew rotations. Pr'gn taught for several years until he also retired and now has recreated MWI as a maintenance facility. He actually purchased one of the derelict space stations from the war and ran quite a comfortable business. Yve has been a Bishop in the Nortanian Ministerium and I have the same title but I choose to add Emeritus as an Honorarium since I never went through the official schooling. I'm not sure what title to use. I am soon to move to Etum since Yve wants to retire there. My stay here on Nortania has been pleasant but not without some concerns. I will certainly miss these experiences but the time has come for me to move on. I truly wonder what the Lord has for me next? This is Agent- Chaplain- Commanding Officer- Admiral- Vice Commandant- General- Ambassador- Bishop (I'm sure I missed one or two since even the Romulans gave me a title I never used) Brian O'Camp signing off.


End file.
